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CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHIVl/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


n 


n 


n 


n 


D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


I      I    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommagte 

Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaur6e  et/ou  peliiculie 


I      I    Cover  title  missing/ 


Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 


□   Coloured  maps/ 
Cartes  gdographiques  en  couleur 

□   Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 

|~~|   Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 


Bound  with  other  material/ 
Reli6  avec  d'autres  documents 


Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  re  liure  serrde  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  int6rieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajouttes 
lore  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais,  iorsque  cela  Atait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  6t4  filmtes. 

Additional  comments:/ 
Cominentaires  suppl6mentaires; 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  6X6  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  m^thode  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiqu6s  ci-dessous. 


I      I   Coloured  pages/ 


D 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  film*  au  taux  de  reduction  indiqu6  ci-dessous. 


Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommag^es 

Pages  restored  and/oi 

Pages  restaur6es  et/ou  pellicuiies 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxe( 
Pages  dicolordes,  tachetdes  ou  piqudes 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  d^tach^es 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  prir 

Qualiti  indgale  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  materii 
Comprend  du  matiriei  suppldmentaire 


I — I  Pages  damaged/ 

I      I  Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 

r~y\  Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 

I      I  Pages  detached/ 

r/l  Showthrough/ 

I      I  Quality  of  print  varies/ 

I      I  Includes  supplementary  material/ 


I — I    Only  edition  available/ 


Seule  Edition  disponible 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata.  une  pelure. 
etc..  ont  6X6  fiim^es  6  nouveau  de  fagon  6 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


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Th«  copy  fllm«d  h«r«  hat  b««n  r«produc«d  thanks 
to  tha  ganarosity  of: 

Library  Division 

Provincial  Archives  of  British  Coiumliia 


L'axamplaira  filmA  f ut  raproduit  grica  i  la 
gAnAroaiti  da: 

Library  Division 

Provincial  Archives  of  British  Columbia 


Tha  imagaa  appaaring  hara  ara  tha  bast  quality 
possibia  conaidaring  tha  condition  and  legibility 
of  tha  original  copy  and  in  kaaping  with  tha 
filming  contract  apacif ications. 


Laa  imagas  auivantaa  ont  AtA  raproduitas  avac  la 
plus  grand  soin.  compta  tanu  da  la  condition  at 
da  la  nattat*  da  l'axamplaira  film*,  at  •!% 
conformity  avac  las  conditions  du  contrat  da 
fiimaga. 


Original  copias  in  printad  papar  covars  ara  filmad 
baginning  with  tha  front  covar  and  anding  on 
tha  last  paga  with  a  printed  or  iiluntratad  impras- 
sion,  or  tha  back  covar  whan  appropriata.  All 
othar  original  copias  ara  filmad  baginning  on  tha 
first  paga  with  a  printad  or  illustratad  impras- 
sion,  and  anding  on  tha  last  paga  with  a  printad 
or  illustratad  imprassion. 


Tha  last  racordad  frama  on  aach  microficha 
shall  contain  tha  symbol  — ^  (moaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  tha  symbol  ▼  (moaning  "END"), 
whichavar  applias. 


Las  axamplairas  originaux  dont  la  couvartura  an 
papiar  ast  imprlmta  aont  filmAs  an  commandant 
par  la  pramiar  plat  at  an  tarminant  soit  par  la 
darniAra  paga  qui  comporta  una  amprainta 
d'imprassion  ou  d'illustration.  soit  par  la  sacond 
plat,  salon  la  cas.  Tous  las  autras  axamplairas 
originaux  sont  filmAs  an  commandant  par  la 
pramiAra  paga  qui  comporta  una  amprainta 
d'imprassion  ou  d'illustration  at  an  tarminant  par 
ia  darniira  paga  qui  comporta  una  talla 
amprainta. 

Un  das  symboias  suivants  apparaltra  sur  la 
darniAra  imaga  da  chaqua  microficha.  salon  la 
cas:  la  symbola  -^  signifia  "A  SUIVRE",  la 
symbols  y  signifia  "FIN". 


Maps,  platas.  charts,  ate.  may  ba  filmad  at 
diffarant  raduction  ratios.  Thosa  too  larga  to  ba 
antiraly  includad  in  ona  axposura  ara  filmad 
baginning  in  tha  uppar  laft  hand  cornar,  laft  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  framas  as 
raquirad.  Tha  following  diagrams  iilustrata  the 
mathod: 


Las  cartas,  planchas.  tableaux,  etc..  peuvent  §tre 
fiimAs  A  des  taux  da  reduction  diffArents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  cliche,  il  est  filmA  A  partir 
da  Tangle  supArieur  gauche,  de  gauche  A  droite. 
et  de  haut  en  bas.  Btn  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nicessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  m^thoda. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

KENKRAL    CASS. 


LIFE 


OF 


GENERAL  LEWIS  CASS : 


COMPRISING  AN  ACCOUNT  OF  HIS 


MILITARY  SERVICES  IN  THE  NORTH-WEST 


DURIMa  THB 


yf- 


WAR  WITH   GREAT  BRITAIN, 


i 


HIS  DIPLOMATIC  CAREER  AND  CIVIL  HISTORY. 


TO  WHICH  IS  APPENDED, 


A  SKKrCH  OP  THE  PUBLIC  AND  PRIVATE  HISTORY 

OP 

MAJOR-GENERAL  W.  0.  BUTLER, 


OF  THE  VOLUNTEER  SERVICE  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 


^^         WITH  TWO  PORTRAITS. 


PHILADELPHIA : 

G.    B.    Z  I  E  B  E  R    &   CO. 

1848. 


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C343I 


1    '!   I  c  1 


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2d 


'VKvn  i'.y,iiw  n:.i:r  Kr  i-i-'i 


Enterad,  according  to  the  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1848,  by 

r.h,',^^  G.   B.   ZIEBER  &   CO.  *    ' 

in  the  clerk's  office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for 
the  Eastern  District  of  Pennsylvania. 


,  UM 


:h 


STEREO  TYFEO  BT  J.  FAGAN. 
PRINTED  BV  C.  SHERMAN. 


•  4.  a    ...  It   -^i 


(2) 


.q:>  ^  n  A  \i  :x  \  s. 


•  U  .J 


¥>"s\ 


!in<j 


'3jf»i!    ,-»'i;><!    '" ''    "^"""'  ' -.'''^    -'4^    'i^ 

The  following  pages  profess  to  be  nothing 
more  than  a  compilation  thrown  together 
within  a  brief  space  of  time,  to  illustrate  the 
career  of  the  distinguished  men  nominated  as 
.  candidates  for  the  two  first  offices  of  the  na- 
tion. Without  aspirations  after  literary  merit, 
it  has  been  sought  to  give  a  popular  account 
of  the  eventful  lives  of  these  personages,  and 
to  place  them  in  a  proper  position  before  the 
people,  without  dwelling  too  long  on  the  in- 
tricacies of  politics  and  party.  When  these 
became  the  subject,  General  Cass  has  been 
caused,  as  far  as  possible,  to  speak  for  himself 

(iii) 


V  r. 


c 


IV 


PREFACE. 


and  extracts  from  his  many  printed  speeches 
and  essays  have  been  made,  to  which  the 
reader  will  not  object,  it*  he  has  a  perception 
of  power  and  eloquence. 

In  the  account  of  General  Butler,  little 
more  has  been  done  than  to  expand  the  well- 
written  sketch  of  Mr.  Blair,  which  at  the  time 
of  its  publication  attracted  such  general  atten- 
tion. With  these  brief  explanations,  this  book 
is  presented  to  the  public. 


1                         Philadelphia,  June,  1848. 

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■         .;./        T^     ■• 

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^J\^      C!'-        i-i.'t       •-.'..'    ^ii    "Sif^w'? 

H|  1 

.      '  •         .'               •     V      ■    ' 

'^^m: 


LIFE 


OF 


GENERAL  LEWIS  CASS. 


!• 


(V) 


:i  M  I  A 


•       « 


.««/•. J  >i!7/;!„i  jAii:-i/'i;) 


V  I 


i-        1^ 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Biography  of  Lewis  Cass — His  Father — Early  emigration 
to  the  North-west — Character  of  that  country,  etc. — 
Studies  law  —  Admitted  to  the  Bar — Burr — Marshal  of 
the  State,  etc Page 


:l 


11 


CHAPTER  II.  ,       .,     ,, 

Preparations  for  War — March  to  the  Frontier — War  — 
Invasion  of  Canada  —  Hull's  procrastination  —  Battle  at 
Aux  Canards — Retreat  from  Canada  —  Cass's  Remon- 
strance—  Detached  Service  —  Surrender  of  Detroit -7- 
Visit  to  Washington  —  Letters — Promotion  —  Thanks 
of  the  Legislature  of  Ohio 23 


CHAPTER  in. 

Joins  General  Harrison's  army  —  Moves  to  the  Frontier — 
Crosses  into  Canada  —  Advance  —  Battle  of  the  Thames, 
etc.  —  Cass  complimented  by  General  Harrison  —  Anec- 

dotes  —  Governor  of  Michigan 52 

(vii) 


Vlll 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Michigan  afler  the  War  —  Commissioner  to  treat  with 
the  Indians  —  Improved  condition  of  Michigan,  etc. — 
Literary  Matters 70 

CHAPTER  V. 

General  Cassis  Civil  Services  —  Literary  History  —  John 
Hunter — General  Jackson — Nulli Bcation  — Alabama — 
Black  Hawk  War — Creek  War  —  Seminole  War  — 
Minister  to  France 85 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Letter  from  General  Jackson — Diplomatic    Services- 
Indemnity  — Eastern  Tour  —  Quintuple  Treaty 


96 


Hi 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Mr.  Cass  in  the  United  States — Visit  to  General  Jackson 
—  Letters — Course  in  the  Senate — Nomination  by  the 
Baltimore  Convention — Correspondence,  &c 132 


t 

-  i 


LIFE 


GENERAL   CASS, 


CHAPTER  I. 

Biography  of  Lewis  Cass — His  Father — Early  emij^fration  to  the 
North-west — Character  of  that  country,  etc. — Studies  law- 
Admitted  to  the  Bar — Burr — Marshal  of  the  State,  etc 

It  has  become  an  axiom,  that  no  one  should  at- 
tempt to  write  the  biography  of  any  individual,  until 
the  tomb  should  have  become  the  seal  of  the  career 
of  the  subject.  Many  examples  might  be  given  of 
the  truthfulness  of  this,  both  in  the  annals  of  our 
own  land  and  of  other  nations,  well  known  to  all 
who  read  and  think.  The  biography  of  the  elder 
Adams,  previous  to  the  passage  of  the  alien  and  se- 
dition laws,  the  career  of  Burr  before  his  defeat  and 
subsequent  treason,  and  of  many  less  important  but 
equally  significant  personages,  would  prove  how 
different  often  is  the  estimate  placed  on  men,  from 
their  sterling  value.  There  are,  however,  occisions 
when  the  name  and  history  of  a  man  become  the 
property  of  the  nation ;  when  the  varied  events  of 
his  career,  whether  in  the  camp,  senate,  or  service 
of  his  country  abroad,  become  the  property  of  the 
people,  who  have  a  right  to  canvass  and  discuss  in 

00 


12 


LIFE     OP 


III' 

tl! 


i  '   I'r 


detail  each  item  of  his  history,  and  when  it  becomes 
almost  a  duty  to  ascertain  and  fix  positively  the 
landmarks  of  his  social  and  public  history. 

This  is  a  consequence  of  the  peculiar  character 
of  our  country,  which,  setting  aside,  if  not  the  ex- 
perience, at  least  the  practice  of  the  old  world,  in 
the  selection  of  its  rulers,  looks  rather  to  the  traces 
left  by  the  feet  of  the  living,  than  to  inscriptions 
laudatory  of  the  dead. 

When  a  great  people,  to  whose  intelligence  are 
confided  not  only  their  own  rights  and  those  of  their 
children,  but,  in  a  great  degree,  the  future  of  hu- 
manity, it  called  upon  to  select  its  chief  magistrate 
and  holder  of  the  executive  power,  it  becomes  each 
member  of  the  community  to  acquire,  if  not  a  tho- 
rough knowledge,  at  least  a  general  acquaintance 
with  the  events  of  the  lives  of  the  candidates  for 
the  high  position,  especially  when  they  appeal  be- 
fore the  community,  endorsed  by  the  recommenda- 
tion of  either  of  the  great  classes,  into  which  party 
and  opinion  have  divided  the  nation.  The  history 
of  parties  in  the  United  States  inculcates  a  sad  les- 
son, and  if  we  believe  the  journals  of  the  day,  dur- 
ing each  political  canvass,  we  must  think  either  that 
tht  candidates  are  god-like  and  unequalled  heroes, 
Nestors  in  experience,  Ulysses  in  wisdom,  and 
Achilles  in  courage,  or  deem  them  disgraces  to  hu- 
manity and  opprobriums  to  society.  Except  Gene- 
ral Washington,  and  perhaps  Mr.  Jefferson,  no  one 
who  has  occupied  the  seat  of  the  president,  has  es- 
caped this  indiscriminate  censure  and  laudation, 
each  of  which  has  often  been  so  indiscreet  and  in- 
discriminate, that  victims  have  fled  for  shelter  to 
their  enemies,  and  cried  in  agony,  "  Save  me  from 
my  friends." 

The  United  States  stand  on  the  eve  of  one  of  the 
great  convulsions  which,  occurring  on  every  fourth 
year,  shake  society,  break  down  the  divisions  of 
party,  and  lately  have  amounted  to  a  total  rovolu- 


ill 


GENERAL     CASS 


13 


■si 


tion  in  all  of  «.!ie  ministerial  clc,jartinents.  The  pe- 
culiar structure  of  the  organization  of  government 
makes  it  necessary  that  new  presidents  should  bring 
with  them  new  secretaries,  and  the  latter  new  offi- 
cials in  important  and  minor  capacities,  more  or  less 
affecting  each  individual  of  the  community,  and 
making  from  their  natural  dependence,  each  circum- 
stance of  the  career  of  the  candidates  of  either  of 
the  two  great  parties  important. 

The  democratic  spirit  of  our  government  is  not  a 
thing  of  theory,  a  mere  expansion  of  words,  but  a 
principle,  pervading  the  idea  and  action  of  both  of 
the  two  great  powers.  Nothing  makes  this  more 
apparent  than  the  organization  of  parties,  which 
almost  recalls  to  us  the  conduct  and  condition  of 
those  countries,  in  which  two  races,  each  having 
its  own  peculiar  ruler  and  code,  were  condensed. 
We   find   them  meeting  at)d  acting  alone,  with  a 

f)arty  constitution  as  well  defined  as  the  law  of  the 
and,  submissive  to  the  principle  that  the  wish  and 
interest  of  the  many  is  the  interest  and  should  be 
the  wish  of  the  few  :  each  party  has  erected  itself 
into  a  subordinate  republic,  and  established  the  rule 
that  a  majority,  greater  or  less,  as  the  case  might 
be,  shall  control  its  decision  in  the  selection  of  a 
candidate.  The  party  annals  of  the  United  States 
have  shown  how  absolute  is  this  decision ;  for  in  no 
case,  since  the  establishment  of  these  sul>rcpublics, 
has  the  mass  of  either  party  failed  to  use  its  influ- 
ence, or  cast  its  voice,  for  the  person  who  had  been 
designated  as  a  candidate.  On  the  propriety  of  this, 
great  and  good  men  of  either  party  have  differed  — 
it  being  notorious  that,  after  the  fiat  of  the  party, 
the  people  vo<  i  according  to  the  suggestion  of  the 
convention,  to  which  they  adhere  almost  as  blindly 
as  canons  and  deans  in  ecclesiastical  corporations, 
abroad,  cast  their  suffrages  for  the  person,  whom, 
by  a  chancellor's  writ,  they  are  permitted  to  elect. 
This  may  be  wrong.     Both  parties,  however,  are 


u 


LIFE     OF 


ni-t 


liable  to  reproach,  and  show  that  thf  y  are  aware  of 
it,  by  the  fact  of  their  applying  to  the  convention  of 
their  opponents  opprobrious  epithets,  which  are 
equally  appropriate  to  their  own  cases.*  It  is  un- 
fortunately but  too  true,  that  this  party  allegiance 
has  proved  more  powerful,  and  exerted  more  influ- 
ence, than  the  call  of  the  higher  and  undoubted 
appeal  of  patriotism.  This  is  a  statement  which 
needs  no  proof;  each  one,  within  his  own  experience, 
being  able  to  recall  a  recent  and  striking  instance. 
We  have  seen  the  whole  democratic  party  cry  for 
war  for  indemnity,  and  the  satisfaction  of  our  na- 
tional claims  on  Mexico ;  on  the  other  hand,  almost 
without  an  exception,  we  have  seen  the  whig  party 
brand  the  government,  and  the  party  which  sup- 
ported it,  as  an  oppressor  of  the  weak  abroad,  and 
the  labouring  man  at  home ;  we  have  listened  to  its 
loud  declamation  against  the  war,  its  causes,  con- 
duct, purposes  and  results.  Now,  not  only  Brutus, 
but  Caesar,  "  is  an  honourable  man,"  yet  one  or  the 
other  is  undoubtedly  mistaken ;  and  it  becomes 
the  duty  of  the  friends  of  both  to  ascertain  each  item 
of  the  history  of  the  two  persons  presented  to  them 
as  exponents  of  the  two  great  political  churches 
which  solicit  their  adherence  and  support. 

When  the  necessity  of  this  knowledge  is  admitted, 
it  follows  as  a  corollary  not  only  that  it  is  admissi- 
ble, but  becomes  a  duty,  for  each  one  to  contribute 
his  mite  to  the  general  stock  of  information  on  this 
most  important  subject.  Therefore  is  it  that  this 
hook  has  been  written.  In  our  country  we  profess 
to  disregard  family  antecedents,  and  to  look  altoge- 
ther to  the  character  of  the  man.     It  is,  however,  a 


*  In  England,  and  other  European  states,  when  a  vacancy 
in  any  Bishopric  or  Arch  Episcopate  occurs,  the  royal  power 
virtually  appoints  an  incumbent,  but  under  the  guise  of  a  writ, 
or  perhiit,  to  elect  {conge  dCelire)  a  particular  person.  Thus, 
the  cojiventions  recommend  men  who  receive  the  unanimous 
vote  of  their  respective  parties. 


f  - 


GENERAL     CASS 


la 


great  mistake  to  suppose  that  we  have  been  able  to 
cast  aside  the  prejudices  and  faults  of  our  fathers,  or 
that  we  wish  to  strip  ourselves  of  their  former  glory. 
It  is  believed  that  no  biography  was  ever  written, 
which  did  not  specify  at  least  the  services,  and 
attempt  to  define  the  character  of  the  parent  of  the 
hero.  Following  this  precept,  and  without  pausing 
to  inquire  whether  it  would  not  be  more  honoured  in 
the  breach  than  in  the  observance,  we  will  state  at 
once  that  Lewis  Cass  has  reason  to  be  proud  of  his 
genealogy. 

His  father,  Jonathan  Cass,  of  the  revolutionary 
army,  was  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  and  descend- 
ant of  a  reputable  family,  long  established  in  the 
vicinity  of  Boston.  When  the  news  of  the  contest 
at  Lexington  became  known  to  the  people  of  that 
section  of  country,  and  when  it  was  obvious  that 
not  only  was  the  British  ministry  determined  to 
persevere  in  its  course,  but  that  the  strife  had  actu- 
ally commenced,  Jonathan  Cass  enlisted  in  the  army. 
His  subsequent  career,  and  the  memorials  of  his  ser- 
vice, prove  him  to  have  been  a  man  of  education, 
and  as  such,  justified  in  aspiring  to  at  least  a  higher 
post  than  that  of  a  private  sentinel.  Under  the  con- 
viction, however,  that  the  nation  needed  the  heart 
and  arms  of  all  its  children,  he  placed  himself  in  the 
humblest  capacity,  participated  in  the  operations  in 
front  of  Boston,  and  by  obedience  learned  to  com- 
mand. In  but  a  short  time  he  became  an  ensign, 
and  after  serving  in  the  various  campaigns  in  Jer- 
sey, and  the  middle  states,  attained  the  rank  of 
captain,  which  he  held  at  the  end  of  the  war.  Dur- 
ing this  trying  time,  the  courage  of  Jonathan  Cass, 
and  his  prudence  and  judgment,  were  well  estab- 
lished, so  that  when  Wayne  commenced  his  success- 
ful expedition  against  the  Indians  in  the  northwest, 
he  was  recalled  to  service,  with  the  higher  grade  of 
major.  On  this  expedition  it  was  that  he  acquired 
that   knowledge  of  the  west,  which   induced   him 


j 


in 

m 


w 


r» 


[Hf 


16 


LIFE    OP 


ultimately  to  make  it  the  home  of  his  family.  He 
emigrated  thither,  after  the  termination  of  hostilities, 
and  died,  ultimately,  at  his  residence,  in  Muskingum 
county,  Ohio. 

Lewis  Cass  was  born  at  Exeter,  New  Hampshire, 
on  the  9th  of  October,  1782,  and  when  his  father 
was  appointed  a  major  in  Wayne's  army  accor.ipa- 
nied  him  southward.  At  that  time,  the  pay  of 
officers  of  the  army  was  small,  and  barely  sufficed 
for  their  necessary  expenses,  so  that  young  Cass 
was  not  unwillin<ily  constrained  to  attempt  to  add 
as  much  as  possible  to  the  family  income  by  his  own 
exertions.  While  Major  Cass  was  stationed  at 
Wilmington,  Delaware,  on  the  recruiting  service, 
his  son  taught  a  school  at  that  place,  and  he  remained 
there  until  after  his  father  had  left  for  the  army. 
Then,  as  he  states  himself,  on  foot  he  crossed  the 
Alleghany,  and  established  at  Marietta  in  the  then 
North-western  Territory.  This  must  have  occurred 
in  1799,  as  persons  who  have  every  fat  ility  for 
obtaining  correct  information,  state  that  at  that  time 
young  Cass  had  "just  entered  his  eighteenth  year." 
At  this  time  the  population  of  the  whole  North-west, 
including  the  old  French  establishment  at  Detroit, 
in  Michigan,  the  ports  on  the  lakes  and  the  thriving 
settlements  around  Kaskaskia,  Illinois,  was  less  than 
twenty  thousand  souls,  and  sent  but  one  delegate  to 
congress.  There  is  therefore  no  inaptness  in  that 
resolution  of  the  Democratic  convention  of  the  state 
of  Ohio,  which  claimed  Lewis  Cass  as  one  of  the 
"  early  pioneers"  of  their  country.  It  may  not  be 
improper  here  to  call  attention  to  the  immense  pro- 
gress made  by  the  region  then  known  as  the  North- 
western Territory,  which  now, after  a  lapse  of  fifty 
years,  contains  five  sovereign  states ;  sends  to  '.' 
National  Congress  thirty-five  representatives ;  and 
ha?  a  population  of  more  than  three  millions  of  souls. 

It  was  the  peculiarity,  and  it  is  not  improbable, 
the  blessing  of  the  west,  that  no  one  of  its  inhabitants* 


.t 


(GENERAL     CASS. 


17 


r.  He 
tilities, 
.ingum 

pshire, 

father 
30iipa- 
)av  of 
lufliced 
g  Cass 

to  add 
lis  own 
ned  at 
service, 
mained 

army, 
sed  the 
16  then 
3currcd 
lity  for 
lat  time 
1  year." 
h-west, 
Detroit, 
thriving 
3SS  than 
3gate  to 

in  that 

he  State 

of  the 

not  be 
[ise  pro- 
j  North- 

of  fifty 
s  to  '.'. 
es ;  and 
of  souls. 
>robable, 
labitants 


at  that  time,  could  shake  off  his  portion  of  the  bur- 
den of  toil  and  hardship,  by  which  alone  the  country 
could  have  been  lifted  to  its  present  position.  For 
years  young  Cass  participated  in  all  this  labour, 
and  in  the  constant  peril  to  which  all  were  exposed 
by  the  vicinity  of  savage  tribes,  inimical  to  the  new 
settlers,  not  only  on  account  of  the  natural  antipathy 
of  race,  but  in  consequence  of  the  perpetual  machi- 
nations of  the  British  agents,  who  long  and  most 
unjustifiably  kept  in  the  pay  of  England  and  stimu- 
lated to  hostilities  a  race,  whom  not  only  the  letter 
of  national  treaties,  but  human  charity  bound  them 
at  least  to  let  alone.  They  did  not,  however,  thus 
abstain,  for  long  before  the  declaration  of  war 
agamst  Great  Britain,  her  allies  were  in  the  field, 
and  the  United  States  were  compelled  to  employ  a 
large  military  force  to  keep  them  in  check. 

In  1802,  during  the  territorial  government,  Lewis 
Cass  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  having  previously 
gone  through  a  course  of  legal  instruction  under  the 
privilege  of  R.  J.  Meigs,  in  the  town  of  Marietta. 
Under  fair  auspices  he  commenced  the  practice  of 
the  law,  travelling,  as  was  the  custom  of  the  day,  on 
horseback,  and  often  alone,  through  the  expanse  of 
forest  which  seperated  the  various  places  of  the 
session  of  the  courts,  in  that  then  sparsely  inhabited 
country.  The  life  of  a  western  lawyer  at  that  day 
was  certainly  arduous,  but  had  its  pleasures.  The 
long  and  solitary  journeys  through  the  wilderness 
encouraged  the  habit  of  reflection  and  matured 
thought :  it  made  all  who  participated  in  it  familiar 
with  the  character  of  the  whole  country,  and  was 
not  by  any  means  without  peculiar  advantages,  from 
the  fact  that  it  brought  together  men  of  rare  quali- 
ties, whose  energy  and  anxiety  to  achieve  something 
had  induced  them  to  turn  from  the  idleness  of  life  in 
the  old  states,  to  the  hardships  of  the  frontier. 

As  a  lawyer,  the  success  of  Cass  was  decided, 
and  his  reputation  v/ell  established,  so  that  in  1806, 
2'" 


1 


18 


LIFE    OF 


he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  legislature  from 
Muskinjijum  county,  over  many  competitors.  Scarce- 
ly a  lawyer,  who  is  not  an  aspirant  for  political  dis- 
tinctions, exists  within  the  United  States,  and  Cass 
had  many  opponents,  all  of  whom  seem,  however,  to 
have  approved  of  the  popular  choice.  During  the 
session  of  the  legislative  body  he  was  a  conspicuous 
member,  participating  in  all  the  debates  on  state 
concerns,  and  in  the  important  discussion  which  re- 
sulted in  the  passage  of  the  law,  which  authorized 
the  executive  to  use  the  power  of  the  state  to  dis- 
perse the  partisans  of  Burr,  taking  the  lead,  and  in- 
troducing the  bill  he  had  draughted  into  the  house. 
How  important  this  step  was,  will  be  evident  to  all, 
on  an  examination  of  the  state  of  the  country. 

Aaron  Burr  was  one  of  those  men  who  with  im- 
mense mental  power,  fail  even  in  the  limited  career 
they  propose  to  themselves,  temporary  success, 
because  the  moral  faculties  or  organs  are  not  propor- 
tioned to  their  mental  capacity.  Born  within  what 
many  are  pleased  to  call  the  upper  circles,  he  had 
received  a  brilliant  education,  and  at  the  era  of  the 
revolution,  carried  away  by  the  popular  impetus,  or 
perhaps,  far-seeing  enough  to  be  satisfied  that  the 
cause  would  ultimately  succeed,  he  had  entered  the 
military  service  of  the  government,  and,  notwith- 
standing the  statements  of  the  many  volumes  which 
have  been  written  since  1806,  had  served  with  no 
small  distinction  in  the  Revolutionary  army.  Dis- 
banded on  the  termination  of  the  war,  as  were 
Hamilton,  Monroe,  Timothy  Pickering,  and  others 
of  the  same  grade,  like  them  he  had  directed  his 
attention  to  the  civil  service  of  the  government. 
How  great  his  influence  was,  may  be  gathered  from 
the  fact,  that  he  was  the  rival  and  nearly  the  suc- 
cessful one  of  the  great  apostle  of  democracy,  Mr. 
Jefferson;  and  it  is  more  than  likely,  but  for  the 
prejudice  excited  by  the  circumstance  of  his  having 
killed  Hamilton,  the  idol  of  the  Federalist  party, 


GENERAL    CASS. 


19 


in  a  duel,  he  would  have  occupied  the  Presidential 
chair. 

In  spite  of  the  many  attacks  made  on  the  social 
character  of  Colonel  Burr,  there  is  every  reason  to 
believe,  that  he  would  have  occupied  the  post  of 
chief  magistrate,  with  as  much  dignity  as  any,  who 
have  since  become  its  incumbents.  For  this,  his 
brilliant  genius,  his  intelligence,  and  his  conver- 
sational eloquence  admirably  qualified  him.  He 
had,  however,  risen  so  high,  that  the  one  other  grade 
in  the  scale  of  dignity  became  indispensable  to  him, 
and,  disappointed  in  attaining  that,  he  fell,  as  far 
purer  beings  have  done  before  him,  through  envy. 
So  anxious  had  he  been  to  succeed,  that  fiis  whole 
resources,  personal  and  of  party,  had  been  put  forth, 
and  having  been  defeated,  was  as  utterly  powerless 
as  Napoleon  became  after  Waterloo.  The  election 
of  Mr.  Jefferson  firmly  established  the  predominance, 
for  years  to  come,  of  the  politicians  of  his  school, 
and  success  to  Burr  in  the  United  States  became  aa 
impossibility. 

One  of  the  most  distinguished  jurists  of  the  day, 
wealth  and  distinction  in  that  sphere  were  attain- 
able; but  the  judicial  ermine  of  the  national  tribu- 
nals would  never  have  been  conferred  on  one  who 
had  so  nearly  defeated  the  executive  and  appointing 
power.  It  is  well  this  was  the  case,  for  a  person 
whom  envy  could  lash  into  treason  was  not  fit  to  be 
the  depository  of  the  great  conservative  power  of 
the'  government.  Discontented,  disappointed  and 
moody,  Burr  disappeared  from  the  popular  eye,  and 
when  he  again  emerged,  it  was  as  the  opponent  of 
the  government  to  which  he  aspired,  and  as  an  out- 
law, for  the  apprehension  of  whom  every  civil  and 
military  officer  of  the  nation  was  on  the  alert. 

What  was  precisely  the  plan  of  Colonel  Burr,  it 
is  impossible  now  to  ascertain :  circumstances,  how- 
ever, indicate  that  if  he  did  not  actually  meditate 
the  dismemberment  and  separation  of  the  territories 


i 


20 


LIFE    OF 


i 


"'1 


!i!!l» 
M 


of  the  union,  his  design  was  treasonable.  When  a 
single  man  in  the  midst  of  a  peaceful  community  is 
found  armed  to  the  teeth,  and  violating  the  ordinary 
police  regulations,  it  is  fair  to  conclude  that  he  medi- 
tates the  perpetration  of  wrong,  and  it  becomes  his 
duty  to  satisfy  the  people  of  his  nonest  intentions.  So 
when  an  individual  places  himself  at  the  head  of  mili- 
tary array  in  a  peaceful  land,  it  is  a  fair  presumption 
that  he  meditates  war  f\nd  treason,  and  the  govern- 
ment, if  it  discharges  its  duty,  is  bound  not  only  to 
call  the  offender  to  account,  but  to  crush  his  power. 
The  latter  was  precisely  the  case  of  Burr. 

The  government  of  the  United  States  had  been  so 
recently  established,  that  the  men  who  had  lived 
before  the  revolution,  and  under  the  government 
which  existed  between  the  ratification  of  peace  and 
the  inauguration  of  General  Washington,  had  not  all 
learned  thoroughly  to  transfer  their  love  and  duty 
to  the  new  authorities.  They  still  devoted  them- 
selves to  their  several  states,  and  if  they  were  faith- 
ful to  the  United  States,  it  was  because  the  pros- 
perity of  their  respective  homes  was  involved  in 
the  national  prosperity.  In  1803,  the  district  of 
Louisiana  had  been  purchased,  notwithstanding  the 
opposition  of  a  factious  minority,  and  Governor 
Claiborne  sent  thither  to  take  possession  of  the  ac- 
quisition. Many  Americans  had  gone  thither,  and 
listened,  with  eager  ears,  to  the  stories  of  Mexican 
mines  and  Spanish  wealth,  by  which  their  cupidity 
had  been  excited,  until  at  last  the  wish  became  father 
to  the  thought,  that  in  the  existing  difficulties  of 
Spain,  it  would  be  easy  to  seize  at  least  a  portion  of 
the  most  magnificent  of  her  colonies,  and  found  there, 
as  their  own  fathers  had  done  in  the  United  States, 
a  new  government.  This  idea  pervaded  the  whole 
community,  and  every  thing  tends  to  show  that  it 
was  the  purpose  of  no  conspiracy,  if  that  word  im- 
plies secrecy,  but  the  common  theme  of  public  con- 
versation among  the  floating  population  of  the  whole 


M 


1 


if 

■4; 


-I 

■-4. 


^ 


GENERAL     CASH, 


21 


ben  a 
ity  is 
inary 
medi- 
es  his 
IS.  So 
F  mili- 
nption 
3vern- 
nly  to 
)ower. 

»een  so 
I  lived 
•nment 
ce  and 
not  all 
d  duty 
them- 
e  faith- 
b  pros- 
Ived  in 
rict  of 
ing  the 
jvernor 
the  ac- 
er,  and 
lexican 
upidity 
e  father 
ties  of 
•tion  of 
d  there. 
States, 
I  whole 
that  it 
ord  im- 
lic  con- 
e  whole 


1 


west.  Tliis  population  was  peculiar.  The  most 
adventurous  men  of  the  whole  nation  were  hemmed 
in  the  valley  of  the  Ohio,  where  they  were  shut  up 
by  the  power  and  presence  of  the  Pottawattamie, 
and  otiicr  tribes  on  the  north,  and  the  great  tribes 
of  Tennessee  on  the  south.  They  had  not  the  free 
scope  of  the  whole  continent,  which  has  since  been 
opened  to  them,  and  had  shaken  off  the  restraints 
imposed  by  society  in  the  older  states.  They  were 
ready  to  undertake  any  scheme  of  wild  adventure. 
The  army  of  Wayne  had  been  disbanded  in  the  west, 
and  many  of  the  officers,  needy  and  poor,  yet  hung 
around  the  cities,  where  they  became  the  associates 
of  foreign  adventurers  of  every  grade  and  character. 
A  plan  was  formed  by  these  men,  it  is  now  believed, 
to  seize  on  a  portion  of  Mexico,  and  establish  them- 
selves there ;  and  goaded  by  his  disappointed  ambi- 
tion and  envy.  Burr  placed  himself  at  their  head. 
So  far  as  the  scheme  was  directed  against  the  then 
Spanish  colonies  of  Mexico,  the  intention  was,  accord- 
ing to  the  laws  of  the  United  States,  merely  a  dis- 
meanor.  New  Orleans  had,  however,  been  garri- 
soned by  the  United  States,  and  as  it  controlled  the 
passes  of  the  Mississippi,  must  necessarily  be  seized 
on  by  the  adventurers.  This  was  treason;  and  the 
moment  two  men  assembled  for  ther  purpose  of  car- 
rying the  plan  into  effect,  at  however  remote  a  day, 
war  had  been  waged,  and  treason  been  committed, 
against  the  United  States.  This  condition  of  affairs 
existed  at  the  time  that  Lewis  Cass  sat  in  the  Gene- 
ral Assembly  of  Ohio. 

The  State  of  Virginia  claimed  the  control  of  the 
Ohio  river,  wherever  it  touched  her,  as  far  as  the 
northern  bank;  but  the  western  declivity  of  the  Al- 
leghany, even  now  sparsely  populated,  was  then  a 
wiUlorness,  except  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  and 
the  scat  of  the  state  government  was  far  off  at  Rich- 
mond. On  one  of  the  islands  of  the  river,  the  sub- 
sequently well-known  Blennerhasset  had  established 


22 


LIFE     OF 


himself,  and  his  house  became  the  nucleus  of  in- 
trigue. To  put  an  end  to  this  state  of  affairs,  on  the 
11th  December,  1806,  Mr.  Cass  introduced  the  bill 
referred  to  above,  suspending  the  habeas  corpus,  and 
thereby  enabling  the  civil  and  military  officers  to 
execute  efficiently  the  duty  required  from  them  by 
the  proclamation  of  the  President. 

This  was  a  great  and  a  decided  step,  necessary  at 
that  time  to  put  an  end  to  the  conspiracy  or  plot, 
and  attracted  much  attention  to  Mr.  Cass.  The 
party  of  intriguers  at  Blennerhassct's  island  and 
other  places,  having  been  dispersed  by  the  conse- 
quences of  this  course  of  Mr.  Cass,  Burr  turned  his 
steps  southward,  and  soon  after  was  arrested  by 
Captain  (now  Major-General)  Gaines  of  the  army, 
the  commander  of  Fort  Stodert,  a  military  post  be- 
tween New  Orleans  and  Mobile.  In  the  similarity 
of  agents'  plans,  etc.,  there  is  much  in  this  plot  of 
Burr's,  as  far  as  we  can  now  follow  its  mazes,  to  re- 
mind us  of  the  infamous  conspiracy  of  Nicholls  and 
others,  subsequently  so  signally  foiled  by  General 
Jackson.  In  March  of  the  next  year,  1807,  Mr. 
Jefferson  appointed  Mr.  Cass  marshal  of  the  United 
States  for  the  district  of  Ohio,  in  the  discharge  of 
the  duties  of  which  he  remained  until  1812,  re- 
siding almost  constantly  on  his  estate  in  Muskingum 
county. 

Previously  to  his  leaving  the  legislature  of  Ohio, 
Mr.  Cass  wrote  and  introduced  the  well-known  ad- 
dress, adopted  unanimously  b\  the  Senate  and  House 
of  Representatives  of  that  state,  to  congratulate 
Mr.  Jefferson  on  the  frustration  of  Burr's  -Jans. 


I 


r 


GENERAL     CASS. 


23 


CHAPTER  II. 


Preparations  for  War — March  to  the  Frontier — War — Invasion 
of  Canada — Hull's  procrastination — Battle  at  Aux  Canards — 
Retreat  from  Canada — Cass's  Remonstrance — Detached  Ser- 
vice— Surrender  of  Detroit — Visit  to  Washington — IjCttei 
Promotion — Thanks  of  the  Legislature  of  Ohia 


The  duties  of  marshal  of  the  United  States  at 
that  time  in  Ohio,  were  most  arduous  and  occupied 
Mr.  Cass  completely.  This  will  be  readily  appre- 
ciated, when  it  is  remembered  there  were  witliin  the 
state  a  large  number  of  Indians,  the  trade  and  in- 
tercourse with  whom  was  regulated  by  laws  of  con- 
gress, the  enforcement  of  which  rested  exclusively 
with  the  courts  of  which  Mr.  Cass  was  the  minis- 
terial officer.  It  also  became  his  duty  to  exercise  a 
general  supervision  over  the  countless  acres  of  wild 
land,  then  unsold,  in  almost  every  portion  of  the 
state,  and  to  assist,  as  far  as  possible,  the  officers  of 
customs  on  the  northern  frontier,  then  few  and  far 
between,  in  the  discharge  of  their  onerous  duties,  in 
preventing  the  introduction  of  arms  among  the  In- 
dians already  hostile  in  their  feelings  to  the  United 
States. 

These  important  duties  kept  him  occupied,  and  as 
his  office  was  incompatible  with  legislative  functions, 
we  do  not  find  his  name  in  the  records  of  the  many 
important  events  of  the  legislative  history  of  Ohio 
for  several  years. 

Previous  to  the  actual  declaration  of  war,  under 
the  conviction  that  it  was  inevitable,  the  government 
of  the  United  States  had  begun  diligently  to  prepare 
for  it,  and  among  other  steps  determined  to  place  on 


trnm 


24 


LIFE     OF 


the  frontier  a  large  force,  so  that  when  the  contest 
actually  began,  an  invasion  of  Canada  might  be 
commenced  or  hostilities  against  the  United  States 
repelled.  At  the  head  of  this  army  was  placed 
General  Hull,  who  had  under  his  orders  three  regi- 
ments of  Ohio  volunteers,  and  the  gallant  and  uni- 
versally distinguished  4th  regiment  of  infantry.  Of 
the  3d  regiment  of  Ohio  volunteers,  Mr.  Cass  was, 
without  serious  opposition,  elected  colonel.  His  ac- 
ceptance of  the  command,  of  course  made  it  neces- 
sary for  him  to  relinquish  the  office  of  marshal. 

The  position  of  the  country  at  this  time  was 
strange.  The  people  were  anxious  for  war,  the 
whole  country  busy  in  preparation ;  yet  the  govern- 
ment, existing  only  in  the  breath  of  the  people,  hesi- 
tated. In  the  interim,  the  British  government  con- 
tinued its  outrages  both  on  the  seas  and  the  north- 
west frontier,  exhibiting  the  brutality  of  the  ruflian, 
who  seeks  by  continued  indignities,  to  wrest  from  a 
feebler  party,  not  an  excuse,  but  a  pretext  for 
quarrel.  The  people  of  the  United  States  were  most 
indignant,  and  nowhere  more  so  than  in  the  west,  so 
that  the  quota  of  volunteers  called  for  from  Ohio, 
was  obtained  without  difficulty,  and  comprised  the 
flower  of  the  state,  which  was  then  pervaded  by  a 
military  spirit  unusual,  but  easy  to  be  accounted  for. 

In  the  war  with  the  Prophet  and  the  tribes  con- 
federated under  his  influence,  in  1811,  Great  Britain 
had  apparently  not  interfered;  yet  thciv.  was  not  in 
the  whole  northwest  one  person  who  doubted  that 
the  British  authorities  in  Canada  were  mainly  in- 
strumental in  bringing  about  and  sustaining  the 
league.  The  hostilities  of  the  league  of  the  Prophet 
and  his  brother  Tecumseh  were  terminated  by  the 
brilliant  victory  of  Tippecanoe,  but  the  feeling  of 
military  ambition  brought  home  by  the  volunteers 
who  had  gained  it  pervaded  the  whole  people,  and 
everywhere  the  young  men  embodied  themselves  in 
military  companies.    What  the  memory  of  victory 


I 
I 


'& 
■'t'. 


-fipr-'W" 


GENERAL    CASS. 


tt 


contest 
ght   be 

States 

placed 
!c  regi- 
1(1  uni- 
ry.  Of 
ss  was, 
Ilis  ac- 

neces- 
lal. 

Tie  was 
ar,  the 
govern- 
lo,  hesi- 
11 1  con- 

north- 
ruffian, 

from  a 
lext  for 
3re  most 
west,  so 
n  Ohio, 
ised  the 
ed  by  a 
ited  for. 
)es  con- 
Britain 
s  not  in 
ed  that 
inly  in- 
ing  the 
Prophet 
by  the 
sling  of 
unteers 
)Ie,  and 
elves  in 
victory 


I 


acroinplishcd  in  the  west  was  broufjht  about  on  the 
Atlantic  by  the  news  of  the  nffiiir  of  the  Little  Bolt, 
and  its  forerunner,  the  attack  on  the  Chesapeake, 
which  latter  outrage  alone  should  have  impelled  the 
people  to  war. 

There  was  some  excuse  for  the  dilatory  conduct 
of  the  authorities:  the  constitution  and  «ifovernrn('nt 
of  the  United  States  might  have,  at  that  time,  been 
considered  as  tested,  and  proven  admirably  calcu- 
lated for  a  state  of  peace,  but  it  was  yet  doubtful 
whether  it  would  survive  that  terrible  ordeal  for  all 
popular  governments,  war.  Many  ible  and  patri- 
otic men  doubted  its  capacity  to  iin  ;rgo  this  test  ; 
and  tho  world  construed  thnir  hesitation  into  cow- 
ardice. Napoleon,  and  the  English  ministry,  each  of 
whom  had  attempted  to  entangle  the  United  States 
in  alliances,  began  to  look  on  us  with  contempt ;  and 
in  spite  of  the  antecedents  of  the  Revolution,  the 
promptness  with  which  the  aggressions  of  the  French 
minister  Genet  had  been  met,  and  the  war  with 
Tripoli,  the  name  of  an  American  had  almost  be- 
come a  reproach,  and  the  flag  of  the  Union  had 
ceased  to  protect  the  vessel  that  bore  it.  A  liinit 
to  all  ihis  was,  however,  at  hand;  and,  yielding  to 
the  voice  of  the  people,  congress,  on  the  18th  of 
June,  1812,  declared  war  against  Great  Britain, 
which  on  the  next  day  was  publicly  proclaimed. 

The  flower  of  the  people  of  Ohio  had  responded 
to  the  call,  and  probably  a  finer  body  of  irregular 
troop§  had  never  been  seen  than  Genera!  Hull  com- 
manded;  and  it  was  prepared  to  wipe  out  a  long 
series  of  aflronts,  by  operations  in  the  country  of 
the  enemy.  Previous  to  the  declaration  of  war,  the 
army  of  Hull  had  been  collected  at  Dayton,  in 
Montgomery  county,  whither  Colonel  Cass  soon 
marched  with  his  regiment,  which  had  been  recruited 
in  the  eastern  portion  of  the  state.  Early  in  June, 
the  volunteers  moved  towards  Urbanna,  in  Cham- 
paign count V,  where  they  were  joined  bv  the  vete- 
3 


26 


LIFE    OF 


ran  4th  infantry,  which,  under  Colonel  Boyd,  had 
won  so  much  fame  at  Tippecanoe. 

The  country  between  Urbanna  and  the  Rapides 
was  then  a  wilderness,  in  possession  of  the  Indians. 
From  Urbanna,  the  route  lay  through  a  pathless 
forest,  and  the  natural  character  of  the  region  op- 
posed great  difficulties  to  the  march.  A  road  was 
to  be  opened,  streams  to  be  bridged,  and  often  long 
causeways  to  be  constructed  over  morasses.  Even 
now  the  traces  of  these  labours  may  be  seen ;  and 
often  a  long  belt  of  limber,  of  smaller  and  different 
growth,  will  indicate  the  route  along  which  HulPs 
army  marched.  Animated,  however,  by  the  cheer- 
fulness and  energy  which  is  the  forte  of  the,Ameri- 
can  people,  this  arduous  portion  of  the  march  was 
soon  accomplished ;  and  in  as  brief  a  time  as  was 
reasonable,  the  army  reached  Rapides  (about  the 
last  of  June). 

From  the  Rapides  of  the  Miami  of  the  Lake  to 
Detroit,  the  country  was  sparsely  inhabited  by  a 
Canadian  French  population,  and  became  more  in- 
teresting and  cheerful,  thoMgh  it  was  not  then  with- 
out hardships.  At  Rapides,  a  small  schooner  was 
loaded  with  a  portion  of  the  baggage  of  the  array, 
to  enable  them  to  march  more  rapidly.  At  this  place 
an  unfortunate  though  perhaps  necessary  delay  oc- 
curred, in  consequence  of  which  the  British  heard 
of  the  declaration  of  war  before  General  Hull,  and 
captured  the  schooner  and  stores,  at  the  same  time 
making  prisoners  of  a  subaltern's  guard  on  board 
of  it.  On  the  5th  of  July,  the  army  reached  De- 
troit, just  in  time  to  prevent  its  occupation  by  the 
British  forces,  which  had  already  begun  works  on 
the  other  side  of  the  river,  and  to  fortify  a  position 
a  few  miles  below^  From  these  positions  they  were 
soon  forced  to  retreat  by  a  well-directed  fire  of  ar- 
tillery. 

The  army  was  most  anxious  to  invade  Canada ; 
and  Colonel  Cass,  who,  with  McArthur,  had  more 


'M 


i 


■^ 


■-I 


GENERAL    CA8S. 


wl 


>yd,  had 

Rapides 
Indians, 
pathless 
gion  op- 
•oad  was 
ften  long 
}.  Even 
}en;  and 
diflerent 
:h  Hull's 
16  cheer- 
ed A  meri- 
irch  was 
[6  as  was 
bout  the 

Lake  to 
ted  by  a 

more  in- 
len  with- 
oner  was 
he  array, 
his  place 
delay  oc- 
sh  heard 
Hull,  and 
anie  time 
on  board 
died  Da- 
rn by  the 
;\rorks  on 
position 
hey  were 
ire  of  ar- 


influencG  than  any  other  of  the  volunteer  officers, 
used  great  efforts  to  induce  General  Hull  to  take 
this  step.  The  General,  however,  had  been  bred  in 
the  army,  and  had  great  prejudices  against  volun- 
teer forces,  thinking  them  not  to  be  relied  on  with 
confidence.  This  feeling,  although  he  knew  the 
enemy  were  not  prepared  to  receive  him,  induced 
him  to  delay  until  it  is  probable  the  season  for  suc- 
cess had  passed  away.  By  dint  of  constant  per- 
suasion. Colonel  Cass  at  last  brought  him  to  a  deci- 
sion, and,  after  two  abortive  attempts  in  front  of 
the  British  batteries,  the  American  army,  on  the 
12th  of  July,  crossed  the  river  unopposed,  and  en- 
tered the  village  of  Sandwich.  Here  another  delay 
took  place,  and  Hull  published  his  famous  procla- 
mation, which  nothing  has  prevented  from  being 
considered  a  masterpiece  but  hrs  ultimate  failure 
and  surrender.  . 

This  manifesto,  which  may  be  esteemed  a  model, 
has  since  been  avowed  to  have  emanated  from 
the  pnn  of  Colonel  Cass,  and  is  worthy  of  the  high 
reputation  he  has  since  acquired.  Unfortunately, 
it  promised  more  than  the  general  who  signed  it 
was  capable  of  performing.  Had  the  command 
rested  in  other  hands,  it  would  have  become  world- 
renowned. 

During  this  time.  Colonel  Cass  continued  the  mas- 
ter-spirit of  the  army,  and  exerted  himself  as  far  as 
possible  to  induce  Hull  to  activity.  The  old  man's 
fjiults,  delay  and  sloth,  had,  however,  seized  upon 
the  general,  and  he  here  frittered  away  many  valu- 
able days.  This  circumstance  created  much  dis- 
satisfaction among  officers  and  men,  who  could  not 
but  compare  the  procrastination  of  the  general  with 
the  eagerness  of  others,  especially  with  Colonel  Cass, 
who  had  been  the  first  armed  American  who  stood 
on  the  Canada  shore,  whither  he  had  passed  with  the 
vanguard  of  his  own  regiment,  which  led  the  column 
on  tnc  12th  of  July. 


sa 


LIFE    OF 


Af:ar  the  publication  of  his  manifesto,  General 
Hull  detached  Colonel  McArthur  to  seize  on  the  coun- 
try along  the  Thames,  which  was  well  siittled,  and 
thriving.  This  was  accomplished  without  resist- 
ance, and  McArthur  returned  to  Sandwich  with  a 
large  quantity  of  blankets,  ammunition,  and  military 
supplies,  together  with  a  great  many  articles  evi- 
dently intended  for  the  Indian  allies  of  the  "Defender 
of  the  Faith."  About  the  same  time,  Colonel  Cass 
was  detached  with  a  party  of  two  hundred  and 
eighty  men  towards  Fort  Maiden,  a  strong  post, 
where  a  large  body  of  Indians  and  British  regular 
troops  were  collected.  This  important  point,  at  the 
embouchure  of  tiie  Detroit  river,  commands  the  pass- 
age to  and  from  the  lake,  and  was  about  thirteen  miles 
from  the  camp  of  General  Hull.  Colonel  Cass,  fol- 
lowing the  course  of  the  Riviere  aux  Canards,  at 
the  distance  of  about  four  miles  of  Maiden,  found  a 
strong  British  force  in  possession  of  a  bridge.  After 
an  examination  of  the  position,  a  rifle  corps  com- 
manded by  Captain  Robinson,  was  ordered  to  ad- 
vance and  occupy  the  enemy,  while  at  the  head  of 
the  remainder  of  his  force,  Colonel  Cass  sought  to 
turn  their  lower  flank,  and  attack  their  rear.  The 
people  of  Canada,  at  least  on  this  portion  of  the 
frontier,  do  not  seem  to  have  extended  a  great  deal 
of  aid  and  comfort  to  the  invaders ;  Colonel  Cass 
was  without  a  guide,  and  being  unacquainted  with 
the  topograpiiy  of  the  place,  was  unable  to  reach 
the  rear  of  the  enemy  until  nearly  night,  when  the 
design  to  surprise  the  post  having  been  discovered, 
large  reinforcements  had  been  advanced.  A  short, 
sharp,  and  decisive  affair,  however,  occurred,  and 
the  British  guard  was  compelled  to  abandon  its 
position,  with  a  loss  of  eleven  killed  and  wounded, 
besides  many  desertions. 

This  was  an  important  success,  for  it  opened  the 
route  to  Maiden,  and  Colonel  Cass  immediately 
despatched  an  express  to  GcnCruI  Hull   inforniing 


•i 


*i 


1 

xff 

jjf 


*i? 


GENERAL    CASS. 


29 


General 
»e  coun- 
ied,  and 
resist- 
witii  a 
military 
',les  evi- 
)efender 
nel  Cass 
red  and 
ng  post, 
regular 
it,  al  the 
the  pass- 
men miles 
Ilass,  fol- 
lardsy  at 
,  fuund  a 
3.    After 
•ps  com- 
d  to  ad- 
head  of 
ought  to 
ar.     The 
n  of  the 
'eat  deal 
•nel  Cass 
ited  with 
to  reach 
*vhen  the 
scovered, 
A  short, 
Ted,  and 
ndon    its 
vounded, 

►ened  the 
ned lately 
n  forming 


him  of  what  had  occurred,  and  urging  him  to  march 
at  once.  Had  he  done  so,  the  route  of  seventeen 
miles  between  the  American  camp  and  Maiden, 
could  soon  have  been  accomplished,  and  Maiden 
would  have  fallen.  What  influences  prevented  Hull 
from  acting  thus  have  never  been  understood :  the 
probability  however,  is,  that  professional  pride  would 
not  permit  the  veteran  soldier,  for  Hull  had  been 
distinguished  in  the  revolution,  to  follow  the  sugges- 
tion of  a  colonel  of  militia.  Be  this  as  it  may.  Colo- 
nel Cass  was  immediately  ordered  to  abandon  the 
post  he  had  captured,  and  return  to  the  army,  which 
of  course  he  immediately  did.  From  this  time, 
Colonel  Cass  seems  to  have  lost  all  confidence  in 
General  Hull,  and  to  have  been  able  to  exert  no  in- 
fluence on  him.  Hull  appears  to  have  separated 
himself  entirely  from  the  officers  of  his  command, 
and  to  have  acted,  to  use  the  mildest  words,  blindly 
and  improvidently. 

After  frittering  away  several  weeks  in  perfect  in- 
activity, Hull  retraced  his  steps  to  Detroit,  in  con- 
sequence it  was  said,  of  the  interruption  of  his  plans 
by  the  capture  of  the  post  of  Michillimacinac.  The 
circumstances  of  this  were  so  strange,  as  to  merit  a 
particular  notice.  This  post,  situated  on  an  island 
at  the  eastern  extremity  of  the  straits  of  Macinac, 
connecting  Lakes  Michigan  and  Huron,  though  an 
important  depot  of  the  American  fur-trade,  was  gar- 
risoned by  fifty-six  men,  commanded  by  Lieutenant 
Hanks  of  the  United  States  artillery  corps.  Against 
it,  a  force  of  no  less  than  six  hundred  Britjsh  and 
Indians  marched  July  16th,  and  summoned  the  place 
to  surrender.  So  remote  was  Macinac  from  the 
inhabited  parts  of  the  United  States,  that  the  com- 
mandant had  as  yet  received  no  intimation  of  the 
existence  of  war;  and,  consequently,  unprepared 
for  defence,  the  young  commandant  capitulated. 

Tlie  blame  for  this  scandalous  affair  rested  with 
Hull,  who  should  immediately  have  r<»mmunicated 

a* 


30 


li  I  F  K      OF 


to  ail  the  commanders  on  tlie  frontier,  the  existence 
of  war.  Had  he  done  so,  there  is  every  reason  to 
believe,  that  Hanks,  who  was  a  very  gallant  and 
competent  officer,  would  have  been  able  to  maintain 
himself.  That  Hull  could  have  done  so,  is  proven 
by  the  fact  that  the  British  commandant  of  St.  Jo- 
seph's, whence  the  enemy's  expedition  moved,  had 
been  informed  of  all  that  occurred  by  Sir  Isaac 
Brock,  who  was  at  least  as  distant  from  the  t'%'o 
posts  as  General  Hull.  The  partisans  of  the  latter 
maintained  that  the  consequences  of  the  capture  of 
Michillimacinac  would  have  been  the  irruption  of 
all  the  northern  tribes,  headed  by  the  British  North- 
west Company's  officers,  and  the  impossibility  of 
holding  Maiden.  This  does  not  however  appear  to 
be  the  case,  for  no  feeble  garrison  like  Hanks's  could 
for  a  moment  have  withstood  this  force,  and  in  case 
of  such  an  invasion,  the  possession  of  Maiden  was 
indispensable  to  the  United  States,  and  Hull  should 
have  been  doubly  diligent  in  efforts  to  obtain  it. 

Every  thing  tends  to  show,  that  Hull,  if  he  was 
ever  serious  in  his  demonstrations  on  Maiden,  was 
now  delighted  at  an  excuse  for  abandoning  them. 
His  preparations  had  been  conducted  in  the  most 
dilatory  manner,  so  that  by  the  first  of  August  only 
two  twenty-four  pound  guns  and  three  howitzers 
had  been  mounted.  At  that  time,  however,  a  coun- 
cil of  war  was  called,  which  recommended  an  im- 
mediate attack.  About  this  crisis,  the  Canada 
militia  began  to  desert,  and  the  whole  country  was 
buoyant  with  expectation  of  a  brilliant  result. 

About  this  time,  a  company  of  Ohio  volunteers 
arrived  at  the  mouth  of  the  Raisin  with  army  sup- 
plies, and  as  the  route  thence- to  Detroit  was  much 
exposed.  Major  Van  Horn,  with  one  hundred  and 
fifty  men,  was  sent  to  meet  them.  This  officer,  on 
his  second  day's  march,  near  the  village  of  Browns- 
town,  was  attacked  by  an  overwhelming  force  of 
British  and  Indians,  which,  after  a  very  sharp  con- 


n 
m 


GLNEUAI.     CASR. 


**1 


Listence 
;ason  to 
int  and 
maintain 
proven 
St.  Jo- 
red,  had 
ir  Isaac 
the  t'vo 
le  latter 
pture  of 
3tion  of 
1  North- 
)ility  of 
ppear  to 
s's  could 

I  it)  case 
den  was 

II  should 
in  it. 

'  he  was 
ien,  was 
ig  them, 
the  most 
just  only 
owitzers 
a  coun- 
d  an  im- 
Canada 
itry  was 
lit. 

)lunteers 
my  sup- 
as  much 
Ired  and 
fficer,  on 
Browns- 
force  of 
jarp  con- 


as 


test,  he  beat  off,  though  wit!»  the  loss  of  nineteen 
killed  and  missing,  and  nine  wounded.  Among  the 
killed  were  three  officers.  Captains  Gilcr^asb, 
McCulloch,  and  Bosler,  and  Captain  Ulry  was  se- 
verely wounded. 

In  the  council  of  war,  Colonel  Cass  had  warmly 
espoused  the  proposition  of  an  immediate  attack  on 
Maiden,  and  therefore  was  amazed  and  disappointed 
when  he  learned  that  the  general  proposed,  not  only 
to  abandon  his  attack  on  Maiden,  but  to  fall  back 
from  his  then  position  to  Detroit.  This  was  to  de- 
sert the  enterprise  and  to  expose  the  Canadians  who 
had  joinejd  him  to  certain  ruin.  Though,  since  the 
.iffair  at  Aux  Canards,  there  had  been  little  har- 
mony and  intercourse  between  the  general  and 
himself,  Colonel  Cass  remonstrated  bitterly,  but  in 
vain.  The  army  then  crossed  the  river  and  re-oc- 
cupied Detroit. 

Words  cannot  express  the  indignation  of  the  army 
at  this  step.  All  their  hopes  were  blasted,  and  they 
gave  vent  to  their  discontent  in  murmurs,  which 
would  have  led  to  mutiny  but  for  the  great  efforts 
of  their  officers.  All  were  dissatisfied,  and  the  only 
difference  was  that  one-half  charged  him  with  cow- 
ardice, and  the  other  with  treason  or  incompetency. 
Possibly  it  would  have  been  better  if  a  decided  step 
had  then  been  taken,  and  communication  had  with 
the  authorities  to  supersede  Hull.  During  his  long 
inactivity  in  Canada,  the  provisions  had  been  con- 
sumed, and  it  became  absolutely  necessary  to  open 
the  communication  with  the  convoy  at  the  mouth 
of  the  river  Raisin,  commanded  by  Captain  Brush, 
which  the  gallant  Major  Vanhorn  had  been  unable 
to  reach.  Lieutenant-colonel  James  Miller  of  the 
1th,  distinguished  at  Tippecanoe,  was  sent  on  an 
expedition  to  effect  a  junction.  But  though  the  vic- 
tor in  a  brilliant  affair  at  a  place  called  Magaugua, 
n'^ar  Brownstown,  to  which  he  forced  the  enemy  to 


32 


LIFE    OF 


retire,  and  which  he  occupied,  Colonel  Miller  wm 
forced  to  return  to  Detroit. 

Disaster  after  disaster  now  occurred.  Among 
others  was  the  capture  of  Captain  Heald,  recently 
commander  of  Chicago,  which  he  had  been  ordered 
to  abandon,  while  en  route  to  Detroit,  by  a  force  of 
British  and  Indians.  Brilliant  as  the  atifair  of  Ma- 
gaugua  had  been,  for  Colonel  Miller  had  beaten 
Muir's  regulars  by  a  decisive  bayonet  charge,  and 
was  only  checked  in  his  career  by  the  great  efforts 
of  Tecumseh,  who  in  person  commanded  the  Indians, 
it  had  led  to  nothing,  and  an  order  was  sent  to  Brush 
to  remain  where  he  was  until  a  communication  could 
be  opened  with  him,  by  crossing  the  Huron  river  at 
a  higher  point.  To  effect  this.  Colonels  Cass  and 
McArthur,  at  the  head  of  a  formidable  column,  left 
Detroit  on  the  14lh.  On  the  l&th,  the  British  took 
possession  of  a  position  immediately  opposite  to  De- 
troit, and  set  about  the  erection  of  their  batteries 
At  this  crisis,  Major  Denny,  who  had  been  left  in 
command  of  Sandwich,  with  orders,  however,  to 
act  entirely  on  the  defensive,  crossed  over  to  Detroit. 
On  the  16th  the  following  summons  was  forwarded 
by  General  Brock  to  the  American  commander. 

"  Sir — The  forces  at  my  disposal  authorize  me  to 
require  of  you  the  surrender  of  Detroit.  It  is  far 
from  my  inclination  to  join  in  a  war  of  extermina- 
tion, but  you  must  be  aware  that  the  numerous  body 
of  Indians  who  have  attached  themselves  to  my 
troops  will  be  beyond  my  control  the  moment  the 
contest  commences.  You  will  find  me  disposed  to 
enter  into  such  conditions  as  will  satisfy  the  most 
scrupulous  sense  of  honour.  I^ieutenant-colonel 
M'Donald  and  Major  Glegg  are  fully  authorized  to 
enter  into  any  arrangements  that  may  tend  to  pre- 
vent the  unnecessary  effusion  of  blood. 

Isaac  Brock,  Major  General." 


^ 


GENERAL     CASS. 


33 


er  wall 

Among 
Bcently 
)rdered 
brce  of 
of  Ma- 
beaten 
ge,  and 
;  efforts 
ndians, 
y  Brush 
n  could 
"iver  at 
ass  and 
mn,  left 
sh  took 
I  to  De- 
ittories 
left  in 
ver,  to 
Detroit, 
warded 
ler. 

3  m'3  to 
t  is  far 
irmina- 
is  body 
to  my 
ent  the 
osed  to 
le  most 
colonel 
•ized  to 
to  pre- 


ral. 


»» 


To  this  summons  a  reply  was  made  that  the  fort 
would  be  defended  to  the  last  extrenjity ;  immedi- 
ately on  the  reception  of  which  the  British  batteries 
opened  their  fire.  The  American  batteries  at  once 
returned  it,  but  on  either  side  it  was  without 
effect. 

In  the  morning  the  British  troops  landed  at  Spring 
Wells,  and  it  was  impossible  to  molest  them  from 
the  fort,  because  the  town  lay  between  it  and  the 
point  of  debarkation.  More  than  one  of  Hull's 
olficers  had  foreseen  this,  and  urged  him  to  erect 
batteries  at  the  landing,  which  if  he  had  done  would 
effectually  have  prevented  it. 

What  followed  is  thus  described  by  an  able  writer: 

"  The  enemy  having  landed,  about  ten  o'clock  ad- 
vanced towards  the  fort  in  close  column,  and  twelve 
deep.  The  fort  being  separated  from  the  town  by 
an  open  space  of  about  two  hundred  yards,  they 
would  be  enabled  to  approach  within  this  distance 
before  its  guns  could  be  brought  to  bear  upon  them, 
unless  they  could  approach  in  the  rear.  The  Ame- 
rican force  was,  however,  judiciously  disposed  to 
prevent  their  advance.  The  militia,  and  a  great 
part  of  the  volunteers,  occupied  the  town,  or  were 
posted  behind  pickets,  whence  they  could  annoy  the 
enemy's  flanks;  the  regulars  defended  the  fort,  and 
two  twenty-four  pounders,  charged  with  grape, 
were  advantageously  posted  on  an  eminence,  and 
could  sweep  the  whole  of  the  enemy's  line,  as  he 
advanced.  AH  was  now  silent  expectation :  the ' 
daring  foe.  still  slowly  moved  forward,  apparently 
regardless,  or  unconscious  of  their  danger  ;  for  their 
destruction  must  have  been  certain,  had  they  not 
been  impressed  with  contempt  for  a  commander 
who  had  so  meanly  abandoned  Sandwich  a  few  days 
before.  The  hearts  of  our  countrymen  beat  high  at 
the  near  prospect  of  regaining  their  credit.  But 
who  can  describe  the  chagrin  and  mortification 
which  took  possession  of  these  troops,  when  orders 


34 


LIFE    OF 


were  issued  for  them  to  retire  to  the  fort ;  and  the 
artillery,  at  the  very  moment  when  it  was  thought 
the  British  were  deliberately  advancing  to  the  most 
certain  destruction,  was  ordered  not  to  fire !  The 
whol'j  force,  together  with  a  great  number  of  wo- 
men and  children,  was  gathered  into  the  fort,  almost 
too  narrow  to  contain  tnem.  Here  the  troops  were 
ordered  to  stack  their  arms,  and,  to  the  astonish*- 
ment  of  every  one,  a  white  flag,  in  token  of  sub- 
mission, was  suspended  from  the  walls.  A  British 
oflicer  rode  up  to  ascertain  the  cause.  A  capitula- 
tion was  agreed  to,  without  even  stipulating  the 
terms.  Words  are  wanting  to  express  the  feelings 
of  the  Americans  on  this  occasion ;  they  considered 
themselves  basely  betrayed  in  thus  surrendering  to 
an  inferior  force  without  firing  a  gun,  when  they 
were  firmly  convinced  that  that  force  was  in  their 
power.  They  had  provisions  for  at  least  fifteen 
days,  and  were  provided  with  all  the  requisite  mu- 
nitions of  war.  They  were  compelled,  thus  humi- 
liated, to  march  out  and  to  surrender  themselves 
prisoners  at  discretion.  The  British  took  immedi- 
ate possession  of  the  fort,  with  all  the  public  pro- 
perty it  contained ;  amongst  which  there  were  forty 
barrels  of  powder,  four  hundred  rounds  of  fixed 
twenty-four  pound  shot,  one  hundred  thousand  ball 
cartridges,  two  thousand  five  hundred  stand  of  arms, 
twenty-five  pieces  of  iron  cannon,  and  eight  of  brass, 
the  greater  number  of  which  had  been  captured  by 
the  Americans  during  the  revolutionary  war. 

"  The  whole  territory,  and  all  the  forts  and  garri- 
sons of  the  United  States,  within  the  district  of  the 
general,  were  also  formally  surrendered :  and  the 
detachment  under  colonels  Cass  and  M' Arthur,  as 
well  as  the  party  under  Captain  Brush,  were  in- 
cluded in  the  capitulation.  Orders  had  been  de- 
spatched the  evening  before,  for  the  detachment 
under  Cass  and  M'Arthur  to  return,  and  they  had 
approached  almost  sufliciently  near  to  discover  the 


I 


0£N£RAL    CASS. 


35 


and  the 

Si 

thought 
the  nfiost 

1 

e!    The 

s 

r  of  wo- 

9 

t,  almost 

m 

)ps  were 
istoriish<> 

m 

of  sub- 

'S 

.  British 

Jm 

capitula- 
ting the 
feelings 
nsidered 

1 

lering  to 

^K 

en  they 
in  their 

1 

t   fifteen 

fi 

site  mu- 

■f. 

s  humi- 

•f 

imselves 

immedi- 

3lic  pro- 

"^ 

jre  forty 
of  fixed 

■'<:>. 

and  ball 

1 

of  arms, 

■  -^ 

3f  brass, 

1 

ured  by 

d  garri- 
:t  of  the 

1 

and  the 

m 

thur,  as 

m 

k^ere  in- 

m 

)een  de- 

m 

ichment 

"8 

ley  had 

'fl 

>ver  the 

» 

movements  of  the  enemy,  while  their  occidental 
situation  might  enable  them  to  render  the  most  ma- 
terial service  during  the  attack.  They  were  sur- 
prised at  the  silence  which  prevailed,  when  every 
moment  was  expected  to  announce  the  conllict; 
and  that  surprise  was  soon  changed  into  ra^e,  when 
they  learned  the  capitulation.  A  British  umcer  was 
then  despatched  to  the  river  Raisin,  to  convey  the 
intelligence  to  Captain  Brush,  who  at  first  gave  no 
credit  to  so  improbable  a  tale,  and  actually  put  the 
oflScer  in  confinement.  The  melancholy  story  was, 
however,  soon  confirmed  by  some  Americans  who 
had  escaped.  Captain  Brush  indignantly  refused  to 
submit  to  the  capitulation,  declaring  that  Hull  had 
no  right  to  include  him,  and  determined  to  return 
to  the  state  of  Ohio.  He  first  deliberated  wiielher 
he  should  destroy  the  public  stores  which  he  iiad  in 
his  possession,  and  which  he  could  not  carry  u'way  ; 
.but  reflecting  that  this  might  be  used  as  a  pretext 
for  harsh  treatment  to  his  countrymen,  he  resolved 
to  abandon  them.  The  greater  part  of  the  volun- 
teers and  militia  were  permitted  to  return  home; 
but  the  regulars,  together  with  the  general,  were 
taken  to  Quebec. 

'<  In  his  official  despatch,  Hull  took  great  puins  to 
free  his  conduct  from  censure.  In  swelling  the  ac- 
count of  the  dangers  with  which  he  conceived  him- 
self beset,  every  idle  rumour  which  had  operated 
on  his  fears  was  placed  under  contribution,  while 
his  imagination  conjured  up  a  thousand  frightful 
phantoms.  He  magnified  the  reinforcements  under 
Colonel  Proctor,  and  gave  implicit  belief  to  the 
story  that  the  whole  force  of  the  Northwestern  Fur 
Company,  under  Major  Chambers,  was  approach- 
ins;  nothing,   in  fact,  was  forgotten  which  could 


'o  ' 


heighten  the  picture,  or  tend*  to  take  the  blame  from 
him.  While  on  the  Canada  side,  it  was  impossible 
to  effect  anything  against  Maiden,  from  the  difliculty 
of  transporting  his  artillery.     Everything  is  difficult 


36 


LIFE     OF 


to  a  man  who  wants  the  necessary  talents.  The 
British  garrison  liud  been  wonderfully  strengthened, 
and  at  this  critical  moment,  General  Hall,  of  Nia- 
gara, announced  that  it  was  not  in  his  power  to 
assist  him.  What  then  could  be  done  but  to  cross 
over  to  Detroit?  that  is,  to  abandon  the  inhabitants 
of  Canada,  who  had  placed  themselves  under  his 
protection;  to  fly  before  the  enemy  had  even  at- 
tempted to  attack  or  molest  him,  and  thus  encourage 
them  in  what  they  would  never  probably  have 
thought  it  possible  to  accomplish. 

*'  But  what  appears  most  to  figure,  in  this  attempt- 
ed vindication,  is  the  frightful  display  of  Indian 
auxiliaries.  The  whole  *  Northern  hive,*  as  he 
called  it,  was  let  loose :  Winnebagos,  Wyandots, 
Hurons,  Chippeways,  Knistenoos,  and  Algonquins, 
Pottowatomies,  Sacs,  and  Kickapoos,  were  swarm- 
ing in  the  neighboring  woods,  and  concealed  behind 
every  bush,  ready  to  rush  to  the  indiscriminate 
slaughter  of  the  Americans.  He  represented  his 
situation,  at  the  moment  of  surrender,  as  most  de- 
plorable. In  consequence  of  the  absence  of  Colonels 
Cass  and  M'Arthur,  he  could  not  bring  more  than 
six  hundred  men  into  the  field,  and  he  was,  more- 
over, destitute  of  all  necessary  supplies  and  muni- 
tions of  war  :  yet,  by  the  morning's  report,  his  force 
exceeded  a  thousand  men  fit  for  duty,  besides  the 
detachment  which  might  be  expected  to  arrive, 
about  the  time  of  the  engagement ;  and  also  three 
hundred  Michigan  militia,  who  were  out  on  duty, 
which  would  make  his  force  upwards  of  sixteen 
hundred.  This  force  was  much  superior  to  that  of 
the  British,  which  consisted  of  about  seven  hundred 
regulars,  one-half  of  which  was  nothing  more  than 
militia  dressed  in  uniform,  for  the  purpose  of  decep- 
tion, and  about  six  hundred  Indians.  Every  other 
part  of  his  statement  was  proved,  by  the  officers 
under  his  command,  to  have  been  incorrect,  or  ex- 
aggerated.    The  most  ordinary  exertion  would  have 


';=? 


ORN£nAL     CAS8. 


37 


s.  The 
ilthened, 

of  Nia- 
ovver  to 

to  cross 
tii)itants 
iider  his 
even  at- 
icourage 
)ly   have 

attempt- 
f  Indian 
,'   as   he 
yandots, 
ronquins, 
)  swarm- 
d  behind 
;riminate 
nted    his 
most  de- 
Colonels 
ore  than 
LS,  more- 
id  muni- 
,  his  force 
sides  the 
arrive, 
Iso  three 
on  duty, 
f  sixteen 
o  that  of 
hundred 
lore  than 
of  decep- 
ery  other 
e  officers 
;t,  or  ex- 
3uld  have 


.€ 


m 


I 


sufticcd,  to  have  coiiipletely  destroyed  the  British 
force.  Ho  declared,  ll»;it  lie  was  actuated  by  a  de- 
sire to  spare  the  etfusion  of  human  blood !  If  he 
ha<l  dcsi«:nL;dly  intended  the  destruction  of  his  fellow 
citizens,  ho  could  not  have  fallen  upon  a  more  un- 
fortunate mea.sure  ;  for,  by  thus  oj)oning  the  frontier 
to  the  toujaluiwk  of  the  savage,  and  giving  reasons 
to  our  enemy  for  representing  us  as  cont(Mnj)tible  in 
arms,  he  invited  those  very  savages,  which  he  so 
much  dreaded,  to  throw  off  every  restraint,  and  de- 
clare themselves  our  foes.  He  might  have  foreseen, 
that  a  coiisiderable  force  would  be  sent  by  tiie  Bri- 
tish, for  the  purpose  of  retaining  this  province,  and 
that  our  country  would  be  compelled  to  suffer  an 
immense  expense  of  blood  and  treasure,  before  our 
possessions  here  could  be  regained.  Although  this 
afterwards  became  the  theatre  of  war,  where  manv 
of  our  countrymen  gained  military  renown,  yet  the 
effect  of  this  lamentable  occurrence  was  visible  in 
every  subsequent  transaction  on  the  borders  of 
Canada." 

Tiic  plan  of  surrender  very  nearly  failed.  The 
officers  were  disgusted,  and  it  was  seriously  pro- 
posed to  arrest  Hull,  and  defend  the  post  without 
him.  Three,  however,  of  the  four  officers  next  in 
rank  to  Gen.  Hull,  were  absent,  viz. :  McArthur, 
Cas.^,  and  Miller;  and  the  others  shrank  from  so 
liigli  and  delicate  a  responsibility.  The  fact  of  the 
case  was,  tiiat,  knowing  those  officers  disapproved 
of  his  course,  they  were  kept  almost  constantly  on 
(loiached  service. 

When  the  surrender  was  reported  to  Col.  Cass,  he 
Itioke  his  sword  in  despair,  refusing  to  surrender  it. 
'i'lio  first  idea  of  Cass  and  McArthur  was  to  effect 
their  return  home;  but,  on  an  examination  of  the 
difiiculties,  it  appeared  impossible,  and  they  reluc- 
tant I  v  submitted. 


'I'he    Bri'.i.-ih    eonmiandtir   having    permitted    t' 


le 


vokinteera  to  return  home,  Col.  Cass  was  ordered 
4 


38 


LIFE     OP 


by  hU  senior,  Col.  McArlhui,  to  repair  to  llio^seat 
of \<;()v<;rnmofjt,  ami  rej)ort  the  circiunstixuces*  to  the 
uullioritics.  While  there,  he  wrote  two  letters, 
which  unfold  his  ideas  of  all  the  circumstances,  and 
which  are  valuable,  because  they  giye  his  plain,  and 
certainly  unvarnished,  opinion  of  the  most  unfortu- 
nate accident  which  ever  befel  the  American  arms. 
The  race  at  Bladensburg,  and  capture  of  Washing- 
ton, were  victories  compared   .vith  it. 

Wasiiinoton,  Sept.  10th,  1812. 

Sir, — Having  been  ordered  on  to  this  place  by 
Colonel  M*  Arthur,  for  the  purpose  of  communicating 
to  the  government  such  particulars  respecting  the 
expedition  lately  commanded  by  Brigadicr-CIeneral 
Hull  and  its  disastrous  result,  as  might  enable  them 
correctly  to  appreciate  the  conduct  of  the  officers 
and  men,  and  to  develope  the  causes  which  pro- 
duced so  foul  a  stain  upon  the  national  character,  I 
have  the  honour  to  submit  for  your  consideration 
the  following  statement: 

When  the  forces  landed  in  Canada,  they  landed 
with  an  ardent  zeal  and  stimulated  vyith  the  hope 
of  conquest.  No  enemy  appeared  within  view  of 
us,  and  had  an  immediate  and  vigorous  attack  been 
made  upon  Maiden,  it  would  doubtless  have  fallen 
an  easy  victory.  I  knew  General  Hull  afterwards 
declared  he  regretted  this  attack  had  not  been  made, 
and  he  had  every  reason  to  believe  success  would 
have  crowned  his  efforts.  The  reason  given  for  de- 
laying our  operations  was  to  mount  our  heavy  can- 
non, and  to  afTord  to  the  Canadian  militia  time  and 
opportunity  to  quit  an  obnoxious  service.  In  the 
course  of  two  weeks  the  number  of  their  militia  who 
were  embodied  had  decreased  by  desertion  from  six 
hundred  to  one  hundred  men;  and,  in  the  course 
of  three  weeks,  the  cannon  were  mounted,  tlie  am- 
munition fixed,  and  every  preparation  made  for  an 
immediate  investment  of  the  fort.     At  a  council,  at 


A 


ihc^seat 
H  to  the 
letters, 
cos,  and 
din,  and 
unfortu- 
n  arms, 
^ashing- 

1812. 

)lace  by 
inicating 
;ting  the 
•General 
)1(?  them 
officers 
lich  pro- 
racter,  I 
ideration 

sy  landed 
the  hope 
view  of 
ack  been 
ive  fallen 
terwards 
!en  made, 
;ss  would 
;n  for  de- 
avv  can- 
time  and 
.  In  the 
ilitia  who 
I  from  six 
10  course 
I,  the  am- 
ide for  an 
ouncil,  at 


GENERAL     CASS. 


SO 


•l 


« 


wliicli  were  present  all  the  field  officers,  nwl  which 
was  held  two  days  before  our  preparations  were 
completed,  it  was  unanimously  agreed  to  make  an 
immediate  attempt  to  accomplish  the  object  of  the 
oxjM'dition.  If  by  waiting  two  days  we  could  have 
the  service  of  our  heavy  artillery,  it  was  agreed  to 
wait;  if  not,  it  was  ^determined  to  go  without  it  and 
I'ltempt  the  place  by  storm.  This  opinion  appeared 
to  correspond  with  the  views  of  the  general,  and  the 
day  was  appointed  for  commencing  our  march.  Ho 
declared  to  me  that  he  considered  himself  pledged 
to  lead  the  army  to  Maiden.  The  ammunition  was 
placed  in  the  wagons;  the  cannon  were  embarked 
on  board  the  floating  batteries,  and  every  requisite 
was  prepared.  The  spirit  and  zeal,  the  ardour  and 
animation  displayed  by  the  officers  and  mon  on  learn- 
ing the  near  accomplishment  of  their  wishes,  were  a 
sure  and  sacred  pledge,  that  in  the  hour  of  trial  they 
would  not  be  found  wanting  in  duty  to  their  coun- 
try and  themselves.  But  a  change  of  measures,  in 
opposition  to  the  wishes  and  opinions  of  all  the  offi- 
cers, was  adopted  by  the  general.  The  plan  of 
attacking  Maiden  was  abandoned,  and  instead  of 
acting  offensively,  we  broke  up  our  camp,  evacuated 
(^inada,  and  recrossed  the  river  in  the  night,  with- 
out even  the  shadow  of  an  enemy  to  injure  ns.  We 
loft  to  the  tender  mercy  of  the  enemy  the  miserable 
(y'anadians  who  had  joined  us,  and  the  protection  we 
nff)rded  them  was  but  a  passport  to  vengeance. 
This  fatal  and  unaccountable  step  dispirited  the 
troops,  and  destroyed  the  little  confidence  which  a 
series  of  timid,  irresolute  and  indecisive  measures 
had  left  in  the  commanding  officer. 

About  the  tenth  of  August,  the  enemy  received  a 
reinforcement  of  four  hundred  men.  On  the  twelfth 
the  commanding  officers  of  three  of  the  regiments 
(the  fourth  was  absent)  wore  informed  through  a 
medium  which  admitted  of  no  doubt,  that  thti  gene- 
ral had  staled  that  a  capitulation  would  be  ncces- 


40 


LIFE     OF 


sary.  They  on  the  same  day  addressed  to  governor 
Meigs  of  Ohio  a  letter,  of  \\liich  the  following  is  an 
extract : 

"  Believe  all  the  bearer  will  tell  you.  Believe  it, 
however  it  may  astonish  you,  as  much  as  if  told  by 

one  of  us.  Even  a  c is  talked  of  by  the . 

The  bearer  will  fill  the  vacancy." 

The  doubtful  fate  of  this  lette'f  rendered  it  neces- 
sary to  use  circumspection  in  its  details,  and  there- 
fore the  blanks  were  left.  The  word  "  capitulation" 
will  fill  the  first,  and  "commanding  general"  the 
other.  As  no  enemy  was  near  us,  and  as  the  supe- 
riority of  our  force  was  manifest,  we  could  see  no 
jKJcessity  for  capitulating,  nor  any  propriety  in  al- 
luding to  it.  We  therefore  determined  in  the  last 
resort  to  incur  the  responsibility  of  divesting  the 
general  of  his  command.  This  plan  was  eventually 
prevented,  by  two  of  the  commanding  officers  of  re- 
giments being  ordered  upon  detachments. 

On  the  13th,  the  British  took  a  position  opposite 
to  Detroit,  and  began  to  throw  up  works.  During 
that  and  the  two  following  days,  they  pursued  their 
object  without  interruption,  and  established  a  bat- 
tery for  two  18-pounders  and  an  8-inch  howitzer. 
About  sunset  on  the  14th,  a  detachment  of  350  men 
from  the  regiments  commanded  by  Colonel  M' Arthur 
and  myself  was  ordered  to  march  to  the  river  Rai- 
sin, to  escort  the  provisions,  which  had  some  time 
remained  there  protected  by  a  party  under  the  com- 
mand of  Captain  Brush. 

On  Saturday,  the  15th,  about  1  o'clock,  a  flag  of 
truce  arrived  from  Sandwich,  bearing  a  summons 
from  General  Brock,  for  the  surrender  of  the  town 
{111(1  fort  of  Detroit,  stating,  he  could  no  longer  re- 
strain the  fiirv  of  the  sava«;es.  To  thi?  an  imme- 
diafe  nnri  spirilefi  refusal  was  returned.  About  4 
o'clock  lh"ir  bnitcri  's  l)ngan  to  play  upon  the  town. 
The  fire  was  returned  and  continued  without  inter- 


O  ENERAL     CASS. 


41 


ivernor 
"  is  an 


ieve  it, 
told  by 


neces- 
1  there- 
ilation" 
al"  the 
le  supe- 

see  no 
y  in  al- 
the  last 
ing  the 
jnJuallv 
rs  c  f  re- 

jpposite 
During 
ed  their 
1  a  bat- 
owitzer. 
550  men 
['Arthur 
ver  Rai- 
me  time 
the  com- 

i  flag  of 
unirnons 
ho  town 
mocr  re- 
n  immo- 
About  1 
he  town, 
ut  inter- 


M 


ruption  and  with  little  effect  till  dark. — Their  shells 
were  thrown  till  11  o'clock. 

At  daylight  the  firing  on  both  sides  recommenced; 
about  the  same  time  the  enemy  began  to  land  troops 
at  the  SpringweJls,  three  miles  below  Detroit,  pro- 
tected bv  two  of  th'ir  armed  vessels.  Between  6 
and  7  o'clock,  they  had  effected  their  landing  and 
iminedifitely  took  up  their  line  of  march.  They 
moved  in  a  close  column  of  platoons,  twelve  in  front, 
upon  the  bank  of  the  river. 

The  fourth  regiment  was  stationed  in  the  fort ;  the 
Ohio  volunteers  and  a  part  of  the  Michigan  militia, 
behind  some  pickets,  in  a  situation  in  which  the 
whole  Hank  of  the  enemy  would  have  been  exposed. 
The  residue  of  [he  Michigan  militia  were  in  the  up- 
per part  of  the  town  to  resist  thr*  incursions  of  the 
suvages.  Two  twenty-four  pounders  loaded  with 
grape-shot  were  postod  on  a  commanding  eminence, 
ready  to  sweep  the  advancing  column.  In  this  situa- 
tion, the  superiority  of  our  position  was  apparent, 
and  our  troops,  in  the  eager  expectation  of  victory, 
awaited  th*:  approach  of  the  enemy.  Not  a  sigh  of 
discontent  broke  upon  the  ear;  not  a  look  of  coward- 
ice niet  the  eye.  Every  man  expected  a  proud  day 
for  his  country,  and  each  was  anxious  that  his  in- 
dividual exertion  should  contribute  to  the  general 
result. 

When  the  head  of  their  column  arrived  within 
about  five  hundred  yards  of  our  line,  orders  were 
received  from  General  Hull  for  the  whole  to  retreat 
to  the  fort,  and  for  the  twenty-four  pounders  not  to 
open  upon  the  enemy.  One  universal  burst  of  in- 
dignation was  apparent  upon  the  icceipt  of  this 
order.  Those,  whose  conviction  was  the  deliberate 
result  of  a  dispassionate  examination  of  passin^r 
events,  saw  the  folly  and  impropriety  of  crowding 
IKK)  !nen  into  a  little  work,  which  300  could  fully 
man,  and  into  which  the  shot  and  shells  of  the  enemy- 
were  falling.     The  fort  was  in  this  manner  filled: 


san 


42 


LIFE     OF 


l!ic  men  vvero  directed  to  slack  tlicir  arin^^,  and 
KCiircely  was  an  opportunity  allbrdcd  of  moving. 
Shortly  after  a  white  flag  was  Imng  out  upon  the 
wails.  A  British  officer  rode  up  to  inquire  thfi 
cause.  A  communicaJion  passed  between  the  com- 
manding generals,  which  ended  the  capituhition 
submitted  to  you.  In  entering  into  this  capitula- 
tion, the  genera!  took  counsel  from  his  own  feelings 
only.  Not  an  officer  was  consulted.  Not  one  wn- 
ticipated  a  surrender,  till  he  saw  the  white  flag  dis- 
played. Even  the  women  were  indignant  at  so 
Hhameful  a  degradation  of  the  American  character, 
and  all  felt  as  they  should  have  felt,  but  he  who  held 
in  his  hands  the  reins  of  authority. 

Our  morning  report  had  that  morning  made  our 
ellective  men  present  fit  for  duty  lOGO,  without  in- 
cluding the  detachment  before  alluded  to,  fiuH  with- 
out including  3('>0  of  the  Michigan  miljf'a  duty. 
About  dark  on  Saturday  evening  the  u jia-runent 
sent  to  escort  the  j)rovisions  received  orders  from 
General  Hull  to  return  with  as  much  expedition  as 
possible.  About  10  o'clock  the  next  day  they  ar- 
rived within  sight  of  Detroit.  Had  a  firing  been 
heard,  or  any  resistance  visible,  they  would  have 
immediately  advanced  and  attacked  the  rear  of  the 
enemy.  The  situation  in  which  this  detachment 
was  placed,  although  the  result  of  accident,  was  the 
best  for  annoying  the  enemy  and  cutting  off  his  re- 
treat that  could  have  been  selected.  With  his  raw 
troops  enclosed  between  two  fires  and  no  hopes  of 
B  iccour,  it  is  hazarding  little  to  say,  that  very  fe  ^' 
would  have  escaped. 

I  h^Tve  been  informed  by  Colonel  Findley,  \\3.v; 
saw  the  return  of  the  quarter-master-gcneral  the 
day  after  the  surrender,  that  their  whole  force  of 
t3very  description,  white,  red  and  black,  was  1030. 
They  had  twenty-nine  platoons,  twelve  in  a  pla- 
toon, of  men  dres?ed  in  uniform.  Many  of  these 
were  evidently  Canadian  militia.     The  rest  of  their 


GENERAL    CASS. 


43 


militia  increased- their  white  force  to  about  seven 
luindred  men.  The  number  of  the  Indians  could 
not  be  ascertained  with  any  degree  of  precision ; 
not  manv  were  visible.  And  in  the  event  of  an  at- 
tack  upon  the  town  and  fort,  it  was  a  species  of 
force  which  could  have  afforded  no  material  advan- 
taije  to  the  enemv. 

In  endeavouring  to  appreciate  the  motives  and  to 
investigate  the  causes  which  led  to  an  event  so  un- 
expected and  dishonourable,  it  is  impossible  to  find 
any  solution  in  the  relative  strength  of  the  contend- 
ing parties,  or  in  the  measures  of  resistance  in  our 
power.  That  we  were  far  superior  to  the  enemy ; 
that  upon  any  ordinary  principles  of  calculation  we 
would  have  defeated  them,  the  wounded  and  indig- 
nant feelings  of  every  man  there  will  testify. 

A  few  (lijys  before  the  surrender,  I  was  informed 
by  General  Hull,  we  had  400  rounds  of  124-pound 
shot  lixed  and  about  100,000  cartridges  made.  We 
surrendered  with  the  fort  40  barrels  of  powder  and 
2500  stand  of  arms. 

Th'3  state  of  our  provisions  has  not  bc'bn  generally 
understood.  On  the  day  of  the  surrender  we  had 
fifteen  days  of  provisions  of  every  kind  on  hand. 
Of  meat  there  was  plenty  in  the  country,  and  ar- 
rano<!metits  had  been  made  for  purchasing  and  grind- 
ing the  dour.  It  was  calctdated  we  could  readily 
firocure  three  month's  provisions,  indepen<lent  of  150 
burri'ls  of  Hour,  and  1.300  head  of  cattle  whicli  had 
been  forwarded  from  the  State  of  Ohio,  which  re- 
maiiKid  at  the  river  Raisin  undor  Captain  Brush, 
witliin  reach  of  the  army. 

But  had  we  been  totally  destitute  of  provisions, 
ojr  diify  and  o'.ir  interest  unloiihtedly  was  to  fight. 
The  (Miemy  invited  us  to  meet  him  in  the  field. 

By  defcatirjg  him  the  whole  country  would  Iiave 
been  open  to  us,  and  the  object  of  our  expedition 
gloriojisly  and  successfully  obtained.  If  we  had 
been  defeated  we  had  nothing  to  do  but  to  retreat 


ll 


'!''. 


44 


LIFE    OF 


to  the  fort,  and  make  the  best  defence  which  cir- 
curnstancos  and  our  situation  rendered  practicable. 
But  basely  to  surrender  without  firing  a  gun — 
tamely  to  submit  without  raising  a  bayonet — dis- 
gracefully to  pass  in  review  before  an  enemy  as  in- 
ferior in  the  quality  as  in  the  number  of  his  forces, 
were  circumstances,  which  excited  feelings  of  in- 
dignation more  easily  felt  than  described.  To  see 
the  whole  of  our  men  flushed  with  the  hope  of  vic- 
tory, eagerly  awaiting  the  approaching  contest,  to 
see  them  afterwards  dispirited,  hopeless  and  de- 
sponding, at  least  500  shedding  tears,  because  they 
were  not  allowed  to  meet  their  country's  foe,  and 
to  fight  their  country's  battles,  excited  sensations, 

'.'ch  no  American  has  ever  before  had  cause  to 
;<  ,  and  which,  I  trust  in  God,  will  never  again  be 
felt,  while  one  man  remains  to  defend  the  standard 
of  the  Union. 

I  am  expressly  authorised  to  state,  that  Colonel 
McArthur  and  Colonel  Findley,  and  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Miilpr  viewed  this  transaction  in  the  light 
which  1  do.  They  know  and  feel,  that  no  circum- 
stance in  our  situation,  none  in  that  of  the  enemy, 
can  excuse  a  capitulation  so  dishonourable  and  un- 
justifiable. This  too  is  the  universal  sentiment 
among  the  troops;  and  I  shall  be  surprised  to  learn, 
that  there  is  one  man,  who  thinks  it  was  necessary 
to  sheath  his  sword,  or  lay  down  his  musket. 

I  was  informed  by  General  Hull  the  morning  after 
the  capitulation,  that  the  British  forces  consisted 
of  1800  regulars,  and  that  he  surrendered  to  pre- 
vent the  effusion  of  human  blood.  That  he  magni- 
fied their  regular  force  nearly  five-fold,  there  can 
be  no  doubt.  Whether  the  philanthropic  reason 
assigned  by  him  is  a  sufficient  justification  for  sur- 
rendf^ring  a  fortified  town,  an  army  and  a  territory, 
is  for  the  government  to  determine.  Confident  I 
am,  that  had  the  courage  and  conduct  of  the  gene- 
ral been  equal  to  the  spirit  and  zeal  of  the  troops, 


OENEHAL     CAS8. 


45 


the  event  would  have  been  brilliant  and  successful 
as  it  now  is  disastrous  and  dishonourable. 

Very  respectfully,  sir,  1  have  the  honour  to  be, 
your  most  obedient  servant, 

LEWIS  CASS, 

Col,  3d  Jiegiment  Ohio  VoluHtters. 
The  Hon.  William  Eustis, 

Secretary  of  IVar.  ,  • 

This  letter  to  the  Secretary  of  War  having  at- 
tracted much  attention  and  comirient,  Colonel  Cass 
became  involved  in  a  correspondence  with  the  Hon. 
Richard  Rush,  which  we  also  give  entire. 

Gentlemen — I  transmit  you  for  publication  the 
enclosed  letter,  politely  and  without  solicitation  ad- 
dressed to  me  by  Mr.  Rush. 

So  far  as  respects  myself  personally,  the  tale  it 
refutes  merits  no  consideration  and  would  meet  no 
attention.  Wiiether  I  am  incompetent  to  the  task 
of  relating  plain  facts,  many  of  which  I  saw,  and 
on  all  of  which  1  had  the  feelings  and  information 
of  hundreds  to  guide  me,  is  a  question  of  no  import- 
ance to  the  public,  and  of  no  interest  to  the  editors 
of  those  papers  who  have  asserted  or  insinuated  it. 
But  it  is  deeply  interesting  to  their  passions  and 
pursjuits,  that  every  account  which  tends  to  exone- 
rate the  government  from  all  participation  in  the 
event  of  an  expodition  feebly  conducted,  and  in  a 
(apitulation  dishonourably  concluded,  should  be  as- 
sailed openly  and  covertly.  I  was  aware,  that  every 
man,  who  should  attempt,  by  a  disclosure  of  the 
truth,  to  communicate  correct  information,  must  ex- 
pect to  have  his  motives  impugned  and  his  character 
a?sai!e:i  by  all  the  rancour  of  malignity  and  eager- 
ness nf  party.  As  I  felt  no  disposition  to  court,  so 
I  trust  thrre  was  no  necessity  for  avoiding  an  inves- 
tigation like  that.  I  had  witnessed  the  irritation  of 
feeling  and  the  latitude  of  observation  in  many  pa- 


46 


LIFE    OF 


pers  in  the  country.  The  terms  "  conscripts,"  "  a 
little  still-born  army,"  find  every  injurious  and  op- 
probrious epithet,  which  party  zeal  could  lavish 
upon  western  patriotism  and  enterprise,  I  had  ob- 
served with  regret,  but  without  surprise.  But  I 
had  to  learn,  that  the  editor  of  a  newspaper  upon 
his  own  responsibility  would  propagate  a  tale  so 
false  and  unqualified,  as  that  in  the  United  States  Ga- 
zette of  —  October  last.  The  letter  transmitted  will 
show  what  credit  is  due  to  the  assertion  of  men, 
who  can  discover  little  to  condemn  in  an  enemy's 
government,  less  to  approve  in  their  own. 

I  cannot  resist  the  present  opportunity  of  placing 
in  its  proper  point  of  view,  a  transaction  misrepre- 
sented with  all  the  virulence  of  faction.  The  capi- 
tulation for  the  surrender  of  Detroit  contained  no 
stipulation  allowing  the  commanding  officer  to  for- 
ward to  his  government  an  account  of  the  causes 
which  produced,  and  of  the  circumstances  which 
attended,  so  unexpected  an  event.  The  command- 
ing officer  himself  became  an  unconditional  prisoner 
of  war.  Ilis  liberation,  or  the  intelligence  he  might 
communicate  to  his  own  government,  depended  on 
the  interest  or  caprice  of  the  enemy.  In  this  situa- 
tion, on  the  arrival  of  Colonel  Mc  Arthur  within  the 
jurisdiction  of  the  United  States,  he  became  the  se- 
nior officer  of  those  troops,  which,  by  ihe  capitula- 
tion, were  permitted  to  return  home,  and  as  such  it 
became  a  matter  of  duty  to  report  himself  to  the 
government,  and  of  propriety  to  communicate  to 
them  all  the  intelligence  in  his  power.  For  this  pur- 
pose the  second  officer  in  command  present  was  or- 
dered to  repair  to  the  seat  of  government.  On  his 
arrival  he  found  the  rumour  of  the  disaster  had  pre- 
ceded him,  and  that  information  was  anxiously  and 
impatiently  expected.  Public  report  had  informed 
the  government  that  they  had  lost  a  fort,  an  army, 
and  a  territory,  but  of  the  remote  or  direct  causes 
\rhich  occasioned  it,  of  the  situation  of  their  own 


GENKUAL    CASS. 


m 


troops,  or  of  the  designs  of  the  enemy,  ihcy  were 
profoundly  ignorant.  Were  they  in  this  situation 
fastidiously  to  reject  profferred  information,  and  con- 
tinue wilfully  ignorant  of  a  transaction  so  striking 
in  its  features,  and  so  important  in  its  consequences 
to  the  peace  and  character  of  the  nation  ?  Or  were 
they  not  compelled  by  duty  to  seek  every  means  of  in- 
formation, in  order  with  promptitude  to  repair  the  evil, 
and  with  vigilance  prevent  the  repetition  of  a  simi- 
lar one?  Their  duty  surely  cannot  be  mistaken  by 
the  most  bigoted  zealot  of  party.  The  act  then  of 
communicating  intelligence  and  that  of  receiving  it, 
was  not  merely  neutral  but  commendable.  Whether 
the  officer  upon  whom  this  task  devolved  executed 
it  well  or  ill,  must  be  left  for  an  enlightened  com- 
munity to  determine.  It  was  a  duty  over  which  the 
government  had  no  control.  As  he  gave  it  they 
must  receive  it,  neither  accountable  for  the  manner 
nor  the  accuracy  of  his  relation. 

The  question  which  has  been  so  ably  discussed, 
whether  this  statement  is  official,  in  itself  a  very  clear 
one,  will  become  important  and  interesting,  when 
disputes  about  words  shall  again  agitate  the  feelings 
and  divide  the  opinions  of  the  world.  Until  then, 
it  is  cheerfully  relinquished  to  those  who  have  so 
learnedly  investigated  it. 

That  an  officer,  in  his  report,  must  confine  himself 
to  tijose  facts  which  passed  within  his  own  observa- 
tion, and  to  which  he  could  testify  in  a  court  of  jus- 
tice, is  among  the  novel  and  extraordinary  preten- 
sions to  which  this  communication  has  given  birth. 
Meagre  indeed  would  be  every  similar  statement, 
were  such  a  principle  correct  in  theory  or  supported 
by  practice.  In  a  complicated  transaction,  it  would 
present  but  a  skeleton  of  a  report,  oinittiiii^  many 
interesting  details  essential  to  a  correct  view  of  the 
subject,  and  necessary  in  the  succession  of  facts 
which  connect  causes  with  their  consequences.  It 
would  require  almost  a**  many  reports  as  there  were 


48 


LIFE    OP 


actors,  anJ  iiistcuii  of  a  faitliful  sketch  by  a  single 
|jaiJ(J,  tt  niot!i-'y  and  discordant  group  of  objijcts 
would  i!icct  the  eye,  excilin*^  little  interest  and  con- 
veyiiin  little  irirunnati<^n.  liut,  in(!cj)endent  of  any 
speculative  view  whicii  may  be  taken  of  the  subject, 
it  is  Msfiicieiit  to  refer  every  candid  and  disf)assionatc 
observer  to  the  reports  of  military  transactions 
which  daily  appear  in  our  own  und  in  other  coun- 
tries. The  futility  of  the  objection  will  be  at  once 
exposed,  for  it  will  le  found  that  a  rcjjort  is  seldom, 
if  ever,  made  without  violatini^  this  rule,  for  the  first 
time  applied  as  a  standard  to  the  statement  of  an 
officer  of  the  most  important  military  event  which 
had  occurred  for  many  years  in  the  history  of  Ids 
country. 

The  propriety  of  publishing  such  a  report  rcjnains 
only  to  be  investigated.  In  a  government  founded 
on  the  power  and  supported  by  the  confidence  of  the 
people,  the  right  of  the  public  to  receive  informa- 
tion on  all  national  transactions  is  too  clear  to  re- 
quire support  or  to  ft  ar  denial.  Whether  a  battle 
be  won  or  lost;  whether  the  event  be  brilliant  or 
disastrous,  the  dutyof  communicating  and  the  right 
of  claiminji  information  remain  still  the  same.  Four 
weeks  after  the  surrender  of  an  important  post,  while 
the  public  n»ind  is  jigitate*!  and  public  expectation 
alive,  the  government  receive  from  an  officer  dis- 
patched by  the  senior  officer  within  tiieir  jurisdic- 
tion und  subjt'ct  to  their  control,  a  statement  of  the 
cireuni-stances  vvhich  preceded  and  accompanied  liu; 
transaction.  Two  weeks  would  have  been  sufficient 
for  the  commanding  officer  to  have  forwarded  his 
dispatches,  had  the  capitulation  conferred  on  him 
the  right  or  tlie  enemy  the  favour  of  d'.inir  it.inime- 
diately  subsvquont  to  tlie  surrender.  The  govern- 
ment had  a  ngh;  to  conclude  the  privilege  was  re- 
fused by  them  or  the  duty  omitted  by  jiim.  That 
p(ution  of  the  troops,  which,  by  the  c;'.|/itulution, 
was  to  be  conveyed  to  tin;  Tniled  States,  alibrded  a 


^m 


GENERAL    CASS. 


^ 


secure  opportunity  for  this  purpose.  This  having 
failed,  it  became  uncertain  at  what  period  his  com- 
munication would  be  received.  Were  the  govern- 
ment then  to  withhold  the  information  they  pos- 
sessed, because  that  information  attributed  the  fail- 
ure of  the  expedition  to  its  commanding  officer? 
The  ch  iracter  of  the  nation,  the  reputation  of  tho 
goverk\ment,  and  of  every  individual  embarked  in 
that  expedition,  were  involved  in  its  issue.  Was  it 
of  no  importance,  by  a  correct  disclosure  of  facts, 
to  redeem  the  public  character  and  feelings  1  Was 
it  of  no  importance,  by  placing  in  its  proper  point 
of  view  the  features  of  the  transaction,  to  show  that 
the  boasts  of  the  enemy  were  as  vain  as  their  con- 
quest was  bloodless  ?  To  prove  to  our  country  that 
her  sons  might  yet  be  led  on  to  battle  and  perhaps 
to  victory  ?  The  government,  too,  had  a  reputation 
to  lose.  That  reputation  was  eagerly  assailed.  The 
failure  of  the  expedition  was  attributed  to  the  want 
of  preparation,  and  the  measures  respecting  it  were 
characterised  as  imbecile  and  ignorant.  The  for- 
bearance demanded  was  far  from  being  granted.  So 
far  as  respects  the  commanding  officer,  the  details 
of  an  unfortunate  expedition  must  be  shrouded  in 
Delphic  obscurity,  and  the  public  await  in  dubious 
suspense  the  tedious  process  of  military  investiga- 
tion. But  every  little  nameless  paper  is  at  liberty 
to  display  its  brilliant  wit  and  sarcastic  remarks  at 
the  expense  of  those  who  planned  and  ordered  the 
expedition.  Their  reputation  awaits  the  result  of 
no  trial.  They  must  be  offered  up  an  expiatory 
sacrifice  upon  the  altar  of  public  indignation.  The 
contemplated  investigation,  which  is  ultimately  to 
determine  the  respective  measure  of  merit  and  of 
blame,  here  becomes  unnecessary.  Its  result  is  an- 
ticipated with  that  confidence  which  o  ght  only  to 
be  inspired  by  an  accurate  knowledge  ot  ihe  af tend- 
ant  circumstances.  To  rt  quire  in  such  a  situiition 
a  studious  concealment  of  those  facts  which  wojid 


60 


LITE  or 


enable  the  public  correctly  to  appreciate  the  conduct 
of  all,  is  to  require  a  species  of  forbearance  as  little 
suited  to  the  practice  as  to  the  duties  of  life. 

1  am  aware,  that  nothing  which  can  be  said  upon 
tliis  subject  will  with  many  carry  conviction,  or 
produce  acknowledgment.  The  most  obvious  con- 
siderations of  reason  and  of  justice  will  be  over- 
looked. Such,  in  the  conflicts  of  opinion  and  the 
collisions  of  party,  has  always  been  the  case.  But 
truth  will  ultimately  prevail,  and  the  public  will 
eventually  be  enabled  correctly  to  estimate  the  con- 
duct of  all  who  have  had  any  agency  in  a  transac- 
tion so  deeply  interesting  to  their  character  and 
feelings. 

»        LEWIS  CASS. 

November  20,  1812. 

Washington,  Novel,  ber  3,  1812. 

Dear  Sir — It  was  not  until  after  I  last  had  the 
pleasure  to  see  you,  and  for  some  time  after  you  left 
Washington,  that  the  foolish  insinuation,  which  has 
appeared  in  some  of  the  newspapers,  of  my  having 
been  concerned  in  writing  the  letter  you  addressed 
to  the  Secretary  of  War,  first  came  to  my  ears ;  nor 
have  I,  to  this  day,  seen  the  insinuation  in  print.  I 
would  have  contradicted  it  at  once  but  that  it 
seemed  to  me  quite  superfluous,  and  that  it  would  be 
to  confer  a  notice  upon  it  which  its  idle  character 
did  not  deserve.  In  what  so  strange  an  untruth 
could  have  originated,  I  am  sure  I  know  not ;  nei- 
ther can  I  divest  myself  of  embarrassment  in  thus 
troubling  you  with  a  line  about  it.  J  have  not  yet 
heard  it  said  that  I  wrote  the  address  you  delivered 
to  the  volunteers  of  Ohio  in  the  spring,  before  I  ever 
had  the  pleasure  to  see  ior  to  know  you ;  and  yet,  it 
is  certain,  that  I  wrote  as  much  of  that  as  I  did  of 
your  letter  to  the  Secretary  of  War. 

I  sincerely  hope  your  health  has  been  re.-estiBib* 
lished  since  you  left  Washington,  and  that  to  other 
causes  of  regret  connected  with  your  march  to  Pe? 


GENERAL    OAtt. 


m 


nor 
I 


troit,  there  will  not  be  added  that  of  any  pcrmannTir 
injury  to  your  constitution. 

Believe  me,  dear  sir,  with  great  respect  and 
esteem,  your  obedient  servant, 

RICHARD  RUSH. 

Colonel  Cass. 

During  the  winter  Colonel  Cass  was  exchanged, 
and  soon  afterwards  appointed  a  Colonel  of  the 
.27th  Regiment  of  Infantry,  and  subsequently  was 
promoted  to  the  grade  of  Brigadier  General  in  the 
^rmy  of  the  United  States.  Hull,  in  his  report  to 
the  Secretary  of  War,  had  exonerated  Colonel  Cass 
and  his  associates,  McArthur,  Findley,  and  Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel  Miller,  from  all  censure,  taking  the 
exclusive  responsibility  on  himself.  This  was  but 
just,  for  in  the  whole  affair  he  had  consulted  no  one, 
and  acted  contrary  to  the  known  opinions  of  his 
officers.  The  services  of  these  officers  were  appre- 
ciated, and,  December  28,  1812,  Governor  Meigs 
transmitted  to  them  the  thanks  of  the  Legislature, 
which,  by  a  vote  of  the  Senate  and  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, he  was  instructed  to  do. 

This  terminated  the  connection  of  Colonel  Cass 
with  Hull's  army.  The  future  career  of  that  general 
is  well  known,  and  the  country  approved  both  of 
the  sentence  and  of  his  pardon. 


■,  ( ■.•■ 


'  ...  I . 


.♦      ■■•■■ 


i       .-       '   ♦. 


LiFB   or 


CHAPTER  III. 


Joins  General  Harrison's  army — Moves  to  the  Frcmtier — Crosses 
into  Cunuda  —  Advance  —  Battle  of  the  Thames,  etc. — Cass 
complimented  by  General  Harrison  —  Anecdotes — Governor 
of  Michigan. 


Soon  after  his  appointment  as  a  brigadier-general, 
Cass  joined  General  Harrison  at  Seneca,  the  place 
of  rendezvous  for  the  army  destined  to  recover  the 
north-west  territory  and  invade  Canada.  While  at 
this  point,  General  Cass  was  busily  employed  in 
preparatory  arrangements,  until  General  Harrison, 
who  was  in  command,  commenced  his  movement, 
which  was  on  the  17th  of  September,  1813:  on  this 
day  the  venerable  and  distinguished  Governor  Shelby 
arrived  at  the  head  of  four  thousand  volun'  ?rs  from 
his  state,  Kentucky,  anxious  to  avenge  t'  friends 
and  countrymen  who  had  been  so  cruelly  ^>AU,aghter- 
ed  at  the  River  Raisin,  after  their  surrender  on  the 
22d  of  January. 

The  brilliant  naval  victory  of  Commodore  Perry, 
having  opened  the  Lake,  General  Harrison  deter- 
mined to  embark  his  infantry  in  transports,  and  to 
send  the  horse  by  land  to  Detroit.  In  consequence 
of  the  immense  preparation  necessary  to  place  on 
shipboard  a  whole  army,  the  troops  were  not  em- 
barked until  the  27th,  and  on  the  next  day  sailed 
from  Put-in-bay  to  the  Western  Sister,  a  small  island 
near  Maiden.  In  the  mean  time,  the  British  com- 
mander evacuated  Detroit  and  Maiden,  after  de- 
stroying the  munitions  of  war  and  other  stores,  and 
retreated  up  the  valley  of  the  Thames,  being  accom- 
panied by  Tecumseh's  Indians.     The  debarkation 


e  BNBR  AL    C  A8f. 


53 


^ 


was  effected  without  difficulty,  under  the  immediato 
direction  of  General  ('ass,  assisted  by  CommDiJore 
Perry,  who,  unable  to  find  an  enemy  on  his  own  ele- 
ment, had  landed  in  search  of  new  laurels,  and  now 
served  as  an  aid-de-camp  of  General  Harrison.  Cum- 
modore  Elliot  was  also  present,  and  rendered  effi- 
cient services.  A  rapid  move  was  made  on  D>nroit, 
which  was  reached  on  the  29th,  and  on  the  SOth  the 
regiment  of  Colonel  Johnson,  which  had  been  de- 
layed one  day  at  the  Raisin  in  the  pious  labour  of 
burying  the  victims  of  Proctor's  inhuman  massacre, 
arrived. 

General  Harrison  and  Governor  Shelby  now 
marched  in  pursuit  of  Proctor,  with  a  picked  force 
of  thirty-five  hundred  men,  selected  from  Bull's 
dragoons,  Johnson's  irregular  horse,  and  Shelby's 
volunteers.  General  Cass  was  present,  and  con- 
tributed much  to  the  success  of  the  expedition,  as  he 
was  now  acknowledged  as  one  of  the  notables  of  the 
west.  They  set  out  on  the  29th  of  September,  and 
on  the  next  day  captured  a  lieutenant  of  the  ene- 
my's dragoons,  from  whom  they  learned  that  Proctor 
had  not  heard  of  their  advance.  On  the  4th  of  Oc- 
tober, the  army  reached  Chatham,  about  seventeen 
miles  from  Lake  St.  Clair,  on  one  of  the  tributaries 
of  the  Thames,  driving  the  enemy  before  them. 
The  latter,  when  they  retired,  had  destroyed  the 
bridge ;  and  while  it  was  being  repaired,  the  Indians, 
under  Tecumseh,  made  an  attack  on  the  advance, 
but  were  at  once  dispersed  by  the  artillery  of  Colo- 
nel Wood  and  Colonel  Johnson's  horse.  At  this 
place  the  American  army  captured  two  thousand 
stand  of  arms,  a  vast  quantity  of  clothing,  and  drove 
the  enemy  for  four  miles  before  them.  On  the  5th, 
the  pursuit  was  renewed,  and  the  last  camp  of  the 
enemy  passed.  Thence  Colonel  Wood  was  detached 
to  reconnoitre,  and  soon  returned  with  information 
that  General  Proctor  had  prepared  for  battle  in  a 
strong  position,  a  few  miles  distant.    This  position 


fi 


54 


LIFE    OF 


lay  between  a  swamp  and  the  river :  immediatelv 
on  the  latter  was  the  British  left,  where  their  artil- 
lery was  posted,  with  the  reverse  flank  on  the 
swamp.  Beyond  the  swamp  were  the  Indians  of 
Tecumseh.  The  position  was  very  strong,  and  had 
no  weak  point,  except  that  it  was  pecuUarly  open 
to  a  cavahy  charge,  and  that  the  infantry  was 
drawn  up  in  open  order.  Proctor's  force  consisted 
of  eight  hundred  regulars  and  two  thousand  Indians. 

The  American  troops  were  more  numerous,  but 
the  mass  of  them  were  untried  men ;  while  every 
man  in  the  British  and  Indian  ariny  had  been  often 
under  fire. 

General  Harrison  placed  Trotter's  brigade  in  the 
front  line,  General  King's  in  the  second,  and  kept 
Miles'  brigade  as  a  reserve.  The  three  were  com- 
manded by  Major-General  Henry.  Another  divi- 
sion, comnanded  by  General  Desha,  was  formed  at 
right  an  (les,  or  as  technical  soldiers  say,  en  potence, 
on  the  left  of  General  Trotter's  brigade.  The  whole 
regular  force  of  General  Harrison,  one  hundred  and 
twenty  strong,  was  formed  in  attacking  columns  to 
be  directed  against  the  enemy's  artillery.  The 
mounted  force  General  Harrison  had  ordered  to 
form  in  two  lines  opposed  to  the  Indians,  but  struck 
with  the  debility  of  the  portion  of  Proctor's  infantry, 
and  aware  of  the  skill  of  the  Kentuckians  as  marks- 
men and  horsemen,  he  resolved  to  make  one  bat- 
talion a  battle-piece  to  act  against  the  British 
regulars.  The  other,  commanded  by  Colonel  John- 
son, was  left  to  hold  the  Indians  in  check.  This 
was  a  wise  disposition,  for  the  terror  of  the  Indians 
at  mounted  men  was  notorious.  It  will  be  observed 
that  General  Cass  had  no  command  yet  as  a  briga- 
dier of  the  regular  service,  he  was,  in  case  of  acci 
dent  ;o  General  Harrison,  undoubtedly  entitled  to 
command  every  one  in  the  field  except  Generals 
Henry  and  Desha. 

Scarcely  had  these  dispositions  been  made  when 


k 


GENERAL    CASS. 


55 


the  enemy  opened  their  fire.  This  was  the  con- 
certed signal  for  the  cavalry  to  charge,  and  though 
at  first  they  halted  under  the  heavy  discharge  of  the 
British  regulars,  they  almost  immediately  dashed 
through  the  enemy's  line,  and  rallying  in  his  rear, 
a  second  time  crossed  it.  Each  time  before  the 
charge  they  poured  in  a  murderous  fire.  As  Gene- 
ral Cass  was  at  that  time  in  the  regular  service, 
he  had  command  of  the  small  body  of  regulars  in  the 
field.  At  their  head,  however,  was  a  distingui:shed 
officer,  amply  competent  to  lead  them,  and  he  there- 
fore threw  himself  on  the  left  i)f  the  battalion  of  the 
mounted  regiment,  under  the  command  of  Lieuten- 
ant-Colonel Johnson,  and  shared  with  them  in  the 
decisive  charge  described  above,  which  decided  the 
day.  This  charge  was  unprecedented,  and  its 
succesb  can  only  be  accounted  for  on  the  grounds 
of  the  peculiarly  faulty  formation  of  Proctor's  regu- 
lars, and  the  moral  force  which  must  always  be 
exerted  by  the  atta^!:  of  a  line  of  six  hundred 
mounted  men.  Immediately  on  the  reverse  charge 
of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Johnson,  the  British  regulars 
threw  down  their  arms  and  fled  in  dismay.  Proc- 
tor deserted  his  allies  and  abandoned  all  for  lost. 
He  was  pursued  immediately  by  a  detachment 
under  the  orders  of  General  Cass,  and  escaped, 
perhaps  fortunately,  for  it  is  very  doubtful  if  the 
orders  of  General  Harrison  and  Governor  Shelby, 
or  even  the  great  influence  of  Cass,  would  have 
saved  from  the  infuriated  Kentuckians  the  murderer 
of  their  Ivindred  and  countrymen. 

In  the  other  position  of  the  field  the  success  was 
equally  decided — Col.  R.  M.  Johnson,  having  dis- 
persed the  Indians,  and  killed,  in  personal  contest, 
their  chief,  Tecumseh.  This  battle  terminated  the 
war  in  the  northwest.  Now  came  a  season  of  bril- 
liant triumph  to  the  American  arms.  Hundreds  of 
prisoners  were  taken  ;  yet  the  massacre  of  the  Rai- 
sin was  not  revenged.     This  victory  placed  General 


56 


LIFE     OP 


Harrison  in  a  most  enviable  position;  and  in  his 
despatches,  he  conferred  the  highest  praise  on  Gen. 
Cass,  who,  it  was  notorious,  had  been  most  conspi- 
cuous in  the  events  of  the  day.  A  thousand  other 
"witnesses  also  bore  testimony  to  his  gallantry — one 
of  whom,  after  the  lapse  of  twelve  years,  when, 
however,  Gen.  Cass  was  by  no  means  the  prominent 
man  he  has  since  become,  thus  expressed  himself: 

"  In  the  autumn  of  1813,  I  well  recollect  General 
Cass,  of  the  northwestern  army,  commanded  by 
Harrison  and  Shelby.  He  was  conspicuous  at  the 
landing  of  the  troops  upon  the  Canada  shore,  below 
Maiden,  on  the  27th  of  September,  and  conspicuous 
at  the  battle  of  the  Thames,  as  the  volunteer  aid  of 
the  commanding  general.  I  saw  him  in  the  midst 
of  the  battle,  in  the  deep  woods  upon  the  banks  of 
the  Thames,  during  the  roar  and  clangor  of  fire- 
arms, and  savage  yells  of  the  enemy.  Then  I  was 
a  green  youth  of  seventeen,  and  a  volunteer  from 
Kentucky." 

The  following  official  despatches  are  important, 
as  showing  the  instrumentality  of  Gen.  Cass  in  the 
success  of  this  contest : 

Copy  of  a  Lstter  from  General  Harrison  to  the  De- 
partment  of  War. 

Head-quartP!s,  near  Moravian  Town,  on  the  River  Thames,  > 
80  miles  from  Detroit,  5th  October,  1813.  5 

Sir  —  I  have  the  honor  to  inform  you,  that  by  the 
blessing  of  Providence,  the  army  under  my  com- 
mand has  this  evening  obtained  a  complete  victory 
over  the  combined  Indian  and  British  forces  under 
the  command  of  General  Proctor.  I  believe  that 
nearly  the  whole  of  the  enemy's  regulars  are  taken 
or  killed.  Amongst  the  former  are  all  the  superior 
officers.,  excepting  Gen.  Proctor.  My  mounted  men 
are  now  in  pursuit  of  him.  Our  loss  is  very  trifling. 
The  brave  Col.  R.  M.  Johnson  is  the  only  officer 


GENERAL    CASS. 


57 


whom  I  have  heard  of  that  is  wounded,  he  badly, 
but  I  hope  not  dangerously. 

.    I  have  the  honor  to  be,  with  great  respect,  sir, 
your  obedient,  humble  servant, 

WM.  H.  HARRISON. 

The  Hon.  John  Armstrong,  Sec'y  at  War. 

Copy  of  a  Letter  from  Major- General  Harrison  to 
the  Secretary  of  War, 

Head-quarters,  Detroit,  9th  Oct.,  1813. 

Sir  —  In  my  letter  from  Sandwich,  of  the  30th 
ultimo,  I  did  myself  the  honor  to  inform  you,  that  I 
was  preparing  to  pursue  ihe  enemy  the  following 
day.  From  various  causes,  however,  I  was  unable 
to  put  the  troops  in  motion  until  the  morning  of  the 
2d  instant,  and  then  to  take  with  me  only  about  one 
hundred  and  forty  of  the  regular  troops,  Johnson's 
mounted  regime.iit.  and  such  of  Gov.  Shelby's  volun- 
teers as  were  fit  for  a  rapid  march,  the  whole 
amounting  to  about  three  thousand  five  hundred 
men.  To  Gen.  McArthur,  (with  about  700  effect- 
ives,) the  protecting  of  this  place,  and  the  sick,  was 
committed.  Gen.  Cass's  brigade,  and  the  corps  of 
Lieut.  Col.  Ball  were  left  at  Sandwich,  with  orders 
to  follow  me  as  soon  as  the  men  received  their  knap- 
sacks and  blankets,  which  had  been  left  on  an  island 
in  Lake  Erie. 

The  unavoidable  delay  &  '^'andwich  was  attend- 
ed with  no  disadvantage  to^  a-  Ge?j  rnl  Proctor 
had  posted  himself  at  Dalson's,  on  th  right  bank  of 
the  Thames,  (or  Trench,)  fifty-six  mil's  from  this 
place,  where  I  was  informed  he  intended  to  fortify 
and  wait  to  receive  me.  He  must  have  believed, 
however,  that  I  had  no  disposition  to  follow  Intn,  or 
that  he  had  secured  my  continuance  here,  i>y  the 
reports  that  were  circulated  that  the  Indians  would 
attack  and  destroy  this  place  upon  the  advance  of 
the  army;  as  he  neglected  to  commence  the  In  k- 
>)g  up  the  bridges  until  the  night  of  the  2d  instant. 


58 


LIFE    OF 


On  that  night  our  army  reached  the  river,  which  is 
twenty-five  miles  from  Sandwich,  and  is  one  of  four 
streams  crossing  our  route,  over  all  of  which  are 
bridges,  and,  being  deep  and  muddy,  are  unforda- 
ble  for  a  considerable  distance  into  the  country — the 
bridge  here  was  found  entire,  and  in  the  morning  I 
proceeded  with  Johnson's  regiment,  to  save,  if  pos- 
sible, the  others.  At  the  second  bridge,  over  a 
branch  of  the  river  Thames,  we  were  fortunate 
enough  to  capture  a  lieutenant  of  dragoons,  and 
eleven  privates,  who  had  been  sent  by  Gen.  Proctor 
to  destroy  them.  From  the  prisoners  I  learned  that 
the  third  bridge  was  broken  up,  and  that  the  enemy 
had  no  certain  information  of  our  advance.  The 
bridge  having  been  imperfectly  destroyed,  was  soon 
repaired,  and  the  army  encamped  at  Drake's  farm, 
four  miles  below  Dalson's. 

The  river  Thames,  along  the  banks  of  which  our 
route  lay,  is  a  fine,  deep  stream,  navigable  for  ves- 
sels of  considerable  burthen,  after  the  passage  of  the 
bar  at  its  mouth,  over  which  there  is  six  and  a  half 
fee  J  water. 

The  baggage  of  the  army  was  brought  from  De- 
tiOit  in  boats,  protected  by  three  gun-boats,  which 
Com.  Perry  had  furnished  for  the  purpose,  as  well 
as  to  cover  the  passage  of  the  army  over  the  Thames 
itself,  or  the  mouths  of  its  tributary  streams ;  the 
banks  being  low,  and  the  country  generally  op«n, 
(prairies,)  as  high  as  Dalson's,  these  vessels  were 
well  calculated  for  that  purpose.  Above  Dalson's, 
however,  the  character  of  the  river  and  adjacent 
country  is  considerably  changed.  The  former, 
though  still  deep,  is  very  narrow,  and  its  banks  high 
and  woody.  Tho  commodore  and  myself,  therefore, 
agreed  upon  the  propriety  of  leaving  the  boats  undei 
a  guard  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  infantry,  and  I  de- 
termined to  trust  to  fortune  and  the  bravery  of  my 
troops  to  effect  the  passage  of  the  river.  Below  a 
place  called  Chatham,  and   four  miles  above  Dal- 


GENERAL    C  A«d. 


59 


son's,  is  the  third  unfordable  branch  of  the  Thames. 
The  bridge  over  its  mouth  had  been  taken  up  by  the 
Indians,  as  well  as  that  at  McGregor's  Mills,  one 
mile   above.      Several  hundred  of  the  Indians  re- 
mained to  dispute  our  passage,  and  upon  the  arrival 
of  the  advanced  guard,  commenced  a  hea -y  fire  from 
the  opposite  bank  of  the  creek,  as  well  as  that  of 
the  river.      Believing  that  the  whole  force  of  the 
enemy  was  there,  I  halted  the  army,  formed  in  order 
of  battle,  and  brought  up  our  two  six  pounders  to 
cover  the  party  that  were  ordered   to   repair  the 
bridge.     A  few  shot,  from  those  pieces,  soon  drove 
off  the  Indians,  and  enabled  us,  in  two  hours,  to  re- 
pair the  bridge  and  cross  the  troops.     Colonel  John- 
son's mounted  regiment  being  upon  the  right  of  the 
army,  had  seized  the  remains  of  the  bridge,  at  the 
mills,  under  a  heavy  fire  from  the  Indians.     Our  loss* 
upon  this  occasion  was,  two  killed  and  three  or  four 
wounded  ;  that  of  the  enemy  was  ascertained  to  be 
considerably  greater.     A  house  near  the  bi  \vi^e,  con- 
taining a  very  considerable  number  of  muskets,  had 
been  set  on  fire,  but  it  was  extinguished  by  our 
troops,  and  the  arms  saved.     At  the  first  farm  above 
the  bridge,  we  found  one  of  the  enemy's  vessels  on 
fire,  loaded   with  arms   and  ordnance   stores,  and 
learned  that  they  were  a  few  miles  ahead  of  us,  still 
on  the  right  bank  of  the  river,  with  the  great  body 
of  the  Indians.     At  Bowles's  farm,  four  miles  from 
the  bridge,  we  halted  for  the  night,  found  two  other 
vessels  and  a  large  distillery  filled  with  ordnance 
and  other  valuable  stores,  to  an  immense  amount,  in 
flames.     It  was  impossible  to  put  out  the  fire.     Two 
twenty-four  pounders,  with   their  carriages,  were 
taken,    and   a  large  quantity  of  ball  and  shells  of 
various  sizes.     The  army  was  put  in  motion  early 
in  the  mornin^r  of  the  5th :  I  pushed  on  in  advance 
of  the  mounted  regiment,  and  requested  Gov.  Shelby 
to  follow  as  expeditiously  as  possible  with  the  in- 
fantry ;  the  governor's  ?eal,  and  that  of  his  men, 


60 


LIFE    OF 


enabled  them  to  keep  up  with  the  cavalry,  and,  by 
9  o'clock,  we  were  at  Arnold's  Mills,  having  taken 
in  the  course  of  the  morning,  two  gun-boats  and  se- 
veral batteaux  loaded  with  provisions  and  ammuni- 
tion. 

A  rapid  at  the  river  at  Arnold's  Mills,  affords  the 
only  fording  to  be  met  with  for  a  considerable  dis- 
tance, but,  upon  examination,  it  was  found  too  deep 
for  the  infantry.  Having,  however,  fortunately 
taken  two  or  three  boats,  and  some  Indian  canoes, 
on  the  spot,  and  obliging  the  horsemen  to  take  a 
foot-man  behind  each,  the  whole  were  safely  crossed 
by  12  o'clock.  Eight  miles  from  the  crossing,  we 
passed  a  farm,  w'lere  a  part  of  the  British  troops 
had  encamped  the  night  before,  u.ler  the  command 
of  Col.  Warburton.  The  detachn.  ^nt  with  General 
Proctor  had  arrived  the  day  before,  at  the  Moravian 
towns,  four  miles  higher  up.  Being  now  certainly 
near  the  enemy,  I  directed  the  advance  of  Johnson's 
regiment  to  accelerate  their  march,  for  the  purpose 
of  procuring  intelligence.  The  officer  commanding 
it,  in  a  short  time,  sent  to  inform  me,  that  his  pro- 
gress was  stopped  by  the  enemy,  who  were  formed 
across  our  line  of  march.  One  of  the  enemy's  wag- 
goners being  also  taken  prisoner,  from  the  informa- 
tion received  from  him,  and  my  own  observation, 
assisted  by  some  of  my  officers,  I  soon  ascertained 
enough  of  their  position  and  order  of  battle,  to  de- 
termine that  which  it  was  proper  for  me  to  adopt. 

I  have  the  honor  herewith  to  enclose  you  my 
general  order,  of  tde  27th  ult.,  prescribing  the  order 
of  march  and  of  battle,  when  the  whole  army  should 
act  together.  But,  as  the  number  and  description 
of  the  troops  had  been  essentially  changed,  since  the 
issuing  of  the  order,  it  became  necessary  to  make  a 
corresponding  alteration  in  their  disposition.  From 
the  place  where  our  army  was  last  halted,  to  the 
Moravian  towns,  a  distance  of  about  three  and  a 
half  miles,  the  road  passes  through  a  beech  forest. 


GENERAL     CASS. 


61 


M^ithout  any  clearing,  and,  for  the  first  two  miles, 
near  to  the  bank  of  the  river.  At  from  two  to  three 
hundred  yards  from  the  river,  a  swamp  extends  pa- 
rallel to  it,  throughout  the  whole  distance.  The 
intermediate  ground  is  dry,  and  although  the  trees 
are  tolerably  thick,  it  is  in  many  places  clear  of 
underbrush.  Across  this  strip  of  land,  its  left  ap' 
payed  upon  the  river,  supported  by  artillery  placed 
m  the  wood,  their  right  in  the  swamp  covered  by 
the  whole  of  their  Indian  force,  the  British  troops 
were  drawn  up. 

The  troops  at  my  disposal  consisted  of  about  one 
hundred  and  twenty  regulars  of' the  27th  regiment, 
five  brigades  of  Kentucky  volunteer  militia  infantry, 
under  his  excellency  Governor  Shelby,  averaging 
less  than  five  hundred  men,  and  Colonel  Johnson's 
regiment  of  mounted  infantry,  making  in  the  whole 
an  aggregate  *;omething  aboVe  three  thousand.  No 
disposition  of  an  army,  opposed  to  an  Indian  force, 
can  be  safe,  unless  it  is  secured  on  the  flanks  and  in 
the  rear.  I  had,  therefore,  no  difficulty  in  arrang- 
ing the  infantry  conformably  to  my  general  order 
of  battle.  General  Trotter's  brigade  of  500  men, 
formed  the  front  Ijife,  his  right  upon  the  road  and 
his  left  upon  the  swamp.  General  King's  brigade, 
as  a  second  line,  150  yards  in  the  rear  of  Trotter's, 
and  Chiles' brigade,  as  a  corps  of  reserve  in  the  rear 
of  it.  These  three  brigades  formed  the  command  of 
Major-General  Henry;  the  whole  of  General  De- 
sha's division,  consisting  of  two  brigades,  were  form- 
( (i  en  potence  upon  the  left  of  Trotter. 

Whilst  I  was  engaged  in  forming  the  infantry,  I 
hnd  directed  Colonel  Johnson's  regiment,  which  was 
s'ill  in  front,  to  be  formed  in  two  lines  opposite  to 
t!ie  enomy,  and,  upon  the  advance  of  the  infantry, 
to  fake  ground  to  the  left  and  forming  upon  that 
flank  to  endeavor  to  turn  the  right  of  the  Indians. 
A  moment's  reflection,  however,  convinced  me  that 
from  the  thickness  of  the  woods  and  swampiness  of 
6 


62 


LIFB     OF 


the  ground,  they  would  be  unable  to  do  any  thing 
on  horseback,  and  there  was  no  time  to  dismount 
them  and  place  their  horses  in  security ;  I  therefore 
determined  to  refuse  my  left  to  the  Indians,  and  to 
break  the  British  lines  at  once  by  a  charge  of  the 
mounted  infantry ;  the  measure  was  not  sanctioned 
by  any  thing  that  I  had  seen  or  heard  of,  but  I  was 
fully  convinced  that  it  would  succeed.  The  Ame- 
rican backwoodsmen  ride  better  in  the  woods  than 
any  other  people.  A  musket- or  rifle  is  no  impedi- 
ment to  them,  being  accustomed  to  carry  them  on 
horseback  from  their  earliest  youth.  I  was  per- 
suaded, too,  that  the  enemy  would  be  quite  unpre- 
pared for  the  shock,  and  ^bat  they  could  not  resist 
it.  Conformably  to  this  idea,  I  directed  the  regi- 
ment to  be  drawn  up  in  close  column,  with  its  right 
at  the  distance  of  fifty  yards  from  the  road,  (that  it 
might  be  in  some  measure  protected,  by  the  trees, 
from  the  artillery,)  its  left  upon  the  swamp,  and  to 
charge  at  full  speed  as  soon  as  the  enemy  delivered 
their  fire.  The  few  regular  troops  of  the  27th  regi- 
ment, under  their  colonel,  (Paul,)  occupied,  in 
column  of  sections  of  four,  the  small  space  between 
the  road  and  the  river,  for  the  purpose  of  seizing  the 
enemy's  artillery,  and  some  ten  or  twelve  friendly 
Indians  were  directed  to  move  under  the  bank.  The 
crotchet  formed  by  the  front  line,  and  General  De- 
sha's division,  was  an  important  point.  At  that 
place,  the  venerable  governor  of  Kentucky  was 
posted,  who,  at  the  age  of  sixty-six,  preserves  all 
the  vigour  of  youth,  the  ardent  zeal  which  distin- 
guished him  in  the  revolutionary  war,  and  the  un- 
daunted bravery  which  he  manifested  at  King*s 
Mountain.  With  my  aids-de-camp,  the  acting  as- 
sistant adjutant  general.  Captain  Butler,  my  gallant 
friend  Commodore  Perry,  who  did  me  the  honor  lo 
serve  as  my  volunteer  aid-de-camp,  and  Brigadier- 
General  Cass,  who,  having  no  command,  tendered 
me  his  assistance.    I  placed  myself  at  the  head  of 


GEN  BRA  L    CASS 


63 


the  front  line  of  infantry,  to  direct  the  movements 
of  the  cavalry,  and  give  them  the  necessary  support. 
The  army  had  moved  on  in  this  order  but  a  short 
distance,  when  the  mounted  men  received  the  fire 
of  the  British,  line,  and  were  ordered  to  charge;  the 
horses  in  the  front  oi'  the  column  recoiled  from  the 
fire;  another  was  givca  by  the  enemy,  and  our 
column,  at  length  getting  in  motion,  broke  through 
the  enemy  with  irresistible  force.  In  one  minute, 
the  contest  in  front  was  over ;  the  British  officers, 
seeing  no  hopes  of  reducing  their  disordered  ranks 
to  order,  and  our  mounted  men  wheeling  upon  them 
and  pouring  in  a  destructive  fire,  immediately  sur- 
rendered. It  is  certain  that  three  only  of  our  troops 
were  wounded  in  this  charge.  Upon  the  left,  how- 
ever, the  contest  was  more  severe  with  the  Indians. 
Colonel  Johnson,  who  commanded  on  that  flank  of 
his  regiment,  received  a  most  galling  fire  from  them, 
which  was  returned  with  great  effect.  The  Indians 
still  further  to  the  right,  advanced  and  fell  in  with 
our  front  line  of  infantry,  near  its  junction  with 
Desha's  division,  and  for  a  moment  made  impres- 
sion upon  it.  His  excellency,  Governo,  Shelby, 
however,  brought  up  a  regiment  to  its  support,  and 
the  enemy,  receiving  a  severe  fire  in  front,  and  a  part 
of  Johnson's  regiment  having  gained  their  rear,  re- 
treated with  precipitation.  Their  loss  was  very 
considerable  in  the  action,  and  many  were  killed  in 
their  retreat. 

I  can  give  no  satisfactory  information  of  the  num- 
l       of  Indians  that  were  in  the  action,  but  they 

ist  have  been  considerably  upwards  of  one  thou- 
sand. From  the  documents  in  my  possession,  (Gen. 
Proctor's  official  letters,  all  of  which  were  taken,) 
and  from  the  information  of  respectable  inhabitants 
of  this  territory,  the  Indians  kept  in  pay  by  the  Bri- 
tish were  much  more  numerous  than  has  been  gene- 
rally supposed.  In  a  letter  to  General  de  Rotten- 
burg,  of  the  27th  instant,  General  Proctor  speaks  of 


64 


LiFB  or 


havinff  prevailed  upon  most  of  the  Indians  to  accom* 
pany  him.  Of  these  it  is  certain  that  fifty  or  sixty 
Wyandot  warriors  abandoned  him.* 

The  number  of  our  troops  was  certainly  greater 
than  that  of  the  enemy,  but  when  it  is  recollected, 
that  they  had  chosen  a  position  that  effectually  se- 
cured their  flank,  which  it  was  impossible  for  us  to 
turn,  and  that  we  could  not  present  to  them  a  line 
more  extended  than  their  own,  it  will  not  be  consi- 
dered arrogant  to  claim  for  my  troops  the  palm  of 
superior  bravery. 

In  communicating  to  the  president,  through  you, 
sir,  my  opinion  of  the  conduct  of  the  officers  who 
served  under  my  command,  I  am  at  a  loss  how  to 
mention  that  of  Governor  Shelby,  being  convinced 
that  no  eulogium  of  mine  can  reach  his  merit.  The 
governor  of  an  independent  state,  greatly  my  supe- 
rior in  years,  in  experience,  and  in  military  charac- 
ter, he  placed  himself  under  my  command,  and  was 
not  more  remarkable  for  his  zeal  and  activity,  than 
for  the  promptitude  and  cheerfulness  with  which  he 
obeyed  my  orders.  The  M ajor-Generals  Henry  and 
Desha,  and  the  Brigadiers  Allen,  Caldwell,  King, 
Chiles  and  Trotter,  all  of  the  Kentucky  volunteers, 
manifested  great  zeal  and  activity.  Of  Governor 
Shelby's  staff,  his  Adjutant-General,  Colonel  Mc- 
Dowell, and  his  Quarter-Master  General,  Colonel 
Walker,  rendered  great  service,  as  did  his  aids-de- 
camp. General  Adair  and  Majors  Barry  and  Crit- 
tenden. The  military  skill  of  the  former  was  of 
great  service  to  us,  and  the  activity  of  the  two  lat- 
ter gentlemen  could  not  be  surpassed.  Illness  de- 
prived me  of  the  talents  of  my  Adjutant-Generaf, 
Colonel  Gaines,  who  was  left  at  Sandwich.     His 

*  A  British  officer  of  high  rank  assured  one  of  my  aids-de- 
camp, that  on  the  day  of  our  landing.  General  Proctor  had,  at 
his  disposal,  upwards  of  three  thousand  Indian  warriors,  but 
BBserted  that  the  greatest  part  had  left  him  previous  to  the  ac- 
tion. 


O  kN  BR  AL    CASS. 


65 


duties  were,  however,  ably  performed  by  the  acting 
assistant  Adjutant-General,  Captain  Butler.  My 
aids-dc-camp,  Lieutenant  O'Fallon,  and  Captain 
Todd,  of  the  line,  and  my  volunteer  aids,  John  Speed 
Smith  and  John  Chambers,  Esq.,  have  rendered  me 
the  most  important  service,  from  the  opening  of  the 
campaign.  I  have  already  stated  that  General  Cass 
and  Commodore  Perry  assisted  me  in  forming  the 
troops  for  action.  The  former  is  an  officer  of  the 
highest  merit,  and  the  appearance  of  the  brave  Com- 
modore cheered  and  animated  every  breast. 

It  would  be  useless,  sir,  after  stating  the  circum- 
stances of  the  action,  to  pass  encomiums  upon  Col. 
Johnson  and  his  regiment.  Veterans  could  not  have 
manifested  more  firmness.  The  colonel's  numerous 
wounds  prove  that  he  was  in  the  post  of  danger. 
Lieutenant-Colonel  James  Johnson,  and  the  Majors, 
Payne  and  Thompson,  were  equally  active,  though 
more  fortunate.  Major  Wood,  of  the  engineers,  al- 
ready distinguished  by  his  conduct  at  Fort  Meigs, 
attended  the  army  with  two  six-pounders.  Having 
no  iise  for  them  in  the  action,  he  joined  in  the  pur- 
suit of  the  enemy,  and,  with  Major  Payne,  of  the 
mounted  regiment,  two  of  my  aids-de-camp,  Todd 
and  Chambers,  and  three  privates,  continued  it  for 
several  miles  after  the  rest  of  the  troops  had  halted, 
and  made  many  prisoners. 

I  left  the  army  before  an  official  return  of  the  pri- 
soners, or  that  of  the  killed  and  wounded,  was  made 
out.  It  was,  however,  ascertained  that  the  former 
amounts  to  six  hundred  and  one  regulars,  including 
twenty-five  officers.  Our  loss  is  seven  killed  and 
twenty-two  wounded,  five  of  which  have  since  died. 
Of  the  British  troops,  twelve  were  killed  and  twen- 
ty-two wounded.  The  Indians  suffered  most  — 
thirty-three  of  them  having  been  found  upon  the 
ground,  besides  those  killed  on  the  retreat. 

On  the  day  of  the  action,  six  pieces  of  brass  artil- 
lery were  taken,  and  two  iron  twenty-four  pound- 
6* 


4i  >•         LIFE    OP 

ers  the  day  before.  Several  others  were  discovered 
in  the  river,  and  can  be  easily  procured.  Of.  the 
brass  pieces,  three  are  the  trophies  of  our  revolu- 
tionary war,  that  were  taken  at  Saratoga  and  York, 
and  surrendered  by  General  Hull.  The  number  of 
small  arms  taken  by  us,  and  destroyed  by  the  ene- 
my, must  amount  to  upwards  of  five  thousand  :  most 
of  them  had  been  ours,  and  taken  by  the  enemy  at 
the  surrender  of  Detroit,  at  the  river  Raisin,  and 
Colonel  Dudley's  defeat.  I  believe  that  the  enemy 
retain  no  other  military  trophy  of  their  victories 
than  the  standard  of  the  4th  regiment.  They  were 
not  magnanimous  enough  to  bring  that  of  the  41st 
regiment  into  the  field,  or  it  would  have  been  taken. 

You  have  been  informed,  sir,  of  the  conduct  of  th^ 
troops  under  my  command,  in  action ;  it  gives  me 
great  pleasure  to  inform  you,  that  they  merit  also 
the  approbation  of  their  country  for  their  conduct, 
in  submitting  to  the  greatest  privations  with  the  ut- 
most cheerfulness. 

The  infantry  were  entirely  without  tents,  and  for 
several  days,  the  whole  army  subsisted  upon  fresh 
beef,  without  bread  or  salt. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  &c., 

WILLIAM  H.  HARRISON. 

General  John  Armstrong,  Secretary  of  War. 

P.  S.  General  Proctor  escaped  by  the  fieetness  of 
his  horses,  escorted  by  forty  dragoons  and  a  number 
of  mounted  Indians.  ^-^ 


GENERAL  ORDERS OF  DEBARKATION,  OF  MARCH, 

AND  OF  BATTLE. 

Head-quarters  on  board  the  U.  S.  Schooner  Ariel,  7 
^  September  27th,  1813.     3 

As  it  is  the  intention  of  the  general  to  land  the 
army  on  the  enemy's  coast,  the  following  will  be  the 
order  of  debarkation,  of  march,  and  of  battle. 

The  right  wing  of  the  army  will  be  jcomposed  of 
the  Kentucky  volunteers,  under  the  command  of  his 


OBNBRAL    CA88. 


67 


excellency,  Governor  Shelby,  acting  as  Major-Gcne- 
rai.  The  left  wing,  of  the  light  corps  of  Lieut.  Col. 
Ball,  and  the  brigades  of  Generals  McArthur  and 
Cass.  This  arrangement  is  made  with  a  view  to  the 
localities  of  the  ground  upon  which  the  troops  are 
to  act,  and  the  composition  of  the  enemy's  force,  and 
is  calculated  in  marching  up  the  lake  or  strait  to 

f»lace  our  regular  troops  m  tnc  open  ground  on  the 
ake,  where  they  will  probably  bo  opposed  by  the 
British  regulars,  and  the  Kentucky  volunteers  in  the 
woods,  which,  it  is  presumed,  will  be  occupied  by 
the  enemy's  militia  and  the  Indians.  When  the  sig- 
nal is  given  for  putting  to  the  shore,  the  corps  of 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Ball  will  precede  the  left  wing; 
the  regiment  of  volunteer  riflemen,  the  right  wing; 
these  corps  will  land  with  the  utmost  celerity,  con- 
sistent with  the  preservation  of  good  order,  and  as 
soon  as  landed  will  seize  the  most  favorable  position 
for  annoying  the  enemy  and  covering  the  disembark- 
ation of  the  troops  of  the  line.  Gen.  Class's  brigade 
will  follow  Col.  Ball's  corps,  and  Gen.  Calmes*  the 
volunteer  riflemen.  The  regiments  will  land  and 
form  in  succession  upon  those  which  precede  them. 
The  right  wing,  with  its  left  in  front,  displaying  to 
the  left.  The  brigades  of  Generals  King,  Allen  and 
Cahlwell,  will  form  successively  to  the  right  of  Gen. 
Calme's;  Gen.  McArthur's  and  Childs'  brigades  will 
form  the  reserve.  The  general  will  command  in 
person  the  brigades  of  Gen.  Cass  and  Calmes,  assist- 
ed by  Major- General  Henry.  His  excellency.  Gov- 
ernor Shelby  will  have  the  immediate  command  of 
the  three  brigades  on  the  right,  assisted  by  Major- 
General  Desha.  As  soon  as  the  troops  are  disem- 
barked, the  boats  are  immediately  to  be  sent  back 
to  the  fleet.  It  will  be  observed  that  the  order  of 
landing  here  prescribed,  is  somewhat  that  of  direct 
eschellons  deployed  into  line  upon  the  advanced 
corps  of  the  right  and  left  wing.  It  is  the  intention 
of  the  general,  however,  that  all  the  troops  which 


68 


LIFE    OF 


are  provided  with  boats  should  land  in  as  quick  suc- 
cession as  possible ;  and  the  general  officers  com- 
manding towards  the  extremities  of  the  line  are 
authorised  to  deviate  from  the  arrangement  to  coun- 
teract any  movement  of  the  enemy,  by  landing  any 
part  of  their  commands,  previoi  s  to  the  formation 
of  the  corps,  which  is  herein  directed  to  precede 
them.  The  corps  of  Lieutenant-C'/lonel  Ball,  and 
the  volunteer  rifle  resiment,  will  maintain  the  posi- 
tion they  occupy  on  landing,  until  the  troops  of  the 
line  are  formed  to  support  them ;  they  will  then  re- 
tire through  the  intervals  of  the  line,  or  to  the  flanks, 
and  form  in  the  rear  of  the  line. 

A  detachment  of  artillery,  with  a  six,  four,  and 
three-pounder,  and  howitzer,  will  land  with  the  ad- 
vanced light  corps  ;  the  rest  of  the  artillery  will  be 
held  in  reserve,  and  landed  a*  such  points  as  Major 
Wood  may  direct. 

The  point  of  landing  for  the  reserve,  under  Brig- 
adier-General Mc Arthur,  cannot  now  be  designated; 
it  will  be  made  to  support  any  point  of  the  line 
which  may  require  aid,  or  be  formed  on  the  flanks, 
as  circumstances  may  render  necessary.  The  ar- 
rangement for  landing  the  troops  will  be  made  en- 
tirely under  the  direction  of  an  officer  of  the  navy, 
whom  Commodore  Perry  has  been  so  obliging  as  to 
offer  for  that  purpose.  The  debarkation  of  the  troops 
will  be  covered  by  the  cannon  of  the  vessels.  The 
troops  being  landed,  and  the  enemy  driven  off,  or 
not  opposing  its  landing,  the  army  will  change  its 
front  to  the  left,  and  form  in  order  of  battle,  in  the 
following  manner :  The  two  brigades  of  regular 
trfK)ps,  and  two  of  the  volunteers,  to  be  formed  in 
two  lines,  at  right  angles  to  the  shore  of  the  lake. 
General  Mc  Arthur's  brigade,  and  Calmes'  to  form 
the  front  of  the  line,  and  Cass  and  Childs*s  the  se- 
cond line;  the  regular  troops  still  on  the  left ;  that 
flank  of  both  lines  resting  on  the  shore,  the  distance 
between  the  two  lines  will  be  three  hundred  yards. 


OBNBRAIi    OA88. 


69 


or 

its 

the 

ular 

in 

ake. 


The  remaining  three  brigades  of  volunteers  will  be 
drawn  up  in  a  single  line  of  two  ranks,  at  right  an- 
gles to  the  line  of  march^  its  head  upon  the  right  of 
the  front  line,  forming  a  crotchet  {en  potence)  with 
that  line,  and  extending  beyond  the  second  line. 
The  corps  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Ball  will  form  the 
advance  of  the; left  wing  at  the  distance  of  three 
hundred  yards,  the  regiment  of  the  rifle  volunteers 
the  advance  of  the  right  wing  at  the  same  dis- 
tance. 

Some  pieces  of  light  artillery  will  be  placed  in  the 
road  leading  up  the  lake,  and  at  such  other  points 
as  Major  Wood  may  direct.-  When  the  order  is 
given  for  marching,  the  first  and  second  lines  will 
advance  by  files  from  the  heads  of  companies ;  in 
other  words,  these  two  lines  will  form  two  columns, 
marching  by  their  flanks,  by  companies,  at  entire 
distances.  The  three  brigades  on  the  right  flunk 
will  be  faced  to  the  left,  and  marched  forward  — 
the  head  of  this  column  still  forming  en  potence  with 
the  front  line.  It  is  probable  that  the  two  brigades 
of  the  front  line  will  extend  from  the  lake,  some  dis- 
tance into  the  woods,  on  the  right  flank,  and  it  is 
desirable  it  should  be  so — but  should  it  be  other- 
wise, and  the  crotchet  or  angle  be  at  any  time  on 
the  opeij  ground,  his  excellency.  Governor  Shelby, 
will  immediately  prolong  the  front  line  to  the  right 
by  adding  to  it  as  many  companies  of  the  leading 
brigade  of  the  flank  column  as  will  bring  the  angle 
and  consequently  the  flank  column  itself  completely 
within  the  wof^ds.  It  is  to  be  presumed  that  the 
enemy  will  make  their  attack  upon  the  army  on  its 
march,  that  their  regular  troops  will  form  their 
right  upon  the  lake,  their  militia  occupy  the  ground 
between  the  regulars  and  the  woods,  and  the  In- 
dians the  woods.  The  formation  herein  prescrib- 
ed is  intended  to  resist  an  arrangement  of  this 
kind.  Should  the  general  conjecture  on  that  sub- 
ject prove  correct,  as  it  must  be  evident  that  the 


70 


LIFB    OF 


It'.. 


ri^ht  of  the  enemy  cannot  be  turned,  and  on  that 
wing  his  best  troops  must  be  placed,  it  will  be  pro- 
per to  refuse  him  our  left,  and  direct  our  princi- 
Cal  effort  to  uncover  the  left  flank  of  his  regulars 
y  driving  off  his  militia.  In  the  event  here  sup- 
posed, therefore,  it  will  be  proper  to  bring  up  a 
part  or  the  whole  of  General  Cafs's  brigade,  to 
assist  the  charge  made  by  General  Calmes,  or  that 
the  former  should  change  positions  with  the  bri- 
gade of  volunteers  in  the  second  line.  Should  the 
general  think  it  safe  to  order  the  whole  of  Cass's 
brigade  to  the  right,  without  replacing  it  with 
another.  General  Cass  will  march  it,  the  right 
formed  in  oblique  eschellons  of  companies.  It  will 
be  the  business  of  General  McArthur,  in  the  event 
of  his  wing  being  refused,  to  watch  the  motion 
of  the  enemy,  (and  with  the  assistance  of  the  ar- 
tillery,) prevent  his  front  line  at  least  from  inter- 
rupting the  progress  of  our  right.  Should  the 
eneniy's  militia  be  defeated,  the  brigade  of  ours 
in  advance  will  immediately  wheel  upon  the  flank 
of  the  British  regulars,  and  General  McArthur 
will  advance  to  attack  them  in  front.  In  the  mean 
time,  his  excellency  Governor  Shelby  can  use  the 
brigade  in  reserve  of  the  second  line,  to  prolong 
the  flank  line  'from  its  front  or  left,  or  to  rein- 
force any  weak  part  of  the  line.  In  all  cases 
where  troops  in  advance  are  obliged  to  retire, 
through  those  who  are  advancing  to  support  them, 
it  will  be  done  by  companies,  in  files,  which  will 
retire  through  the  intervals  of  the  advancing  line, 
and  will  immediately  form  in  the  rear.  The  light 
troops  will  be  particularly  governed  by  this  direc- 
tion. 

The  disposition  of  the  troops  on  the  right  flank  is 
such  as  the  commanding  general  thinks  best  calcu- 
lated to  resist  an  attack  from  Indians,  which  is  only 
to  be  expected  from  that  quarter.  His  excellency 
Governor  Shelby  will,  hov.  t;ver,  use  his  discretion  in 


OEN  BR  AL    CASS. 


71 


making  any  alteration  which   his  experience   and 

i'udgment  may  dictate.  Lieutenant-Colonel  Ball, 
(ieutenant-Coionel  Simral,  and  the  general  ofHcers 
commanding  on  the  flank  line  are  to  send  out  small 
detachments  in  advance  of  the  two  former  corps, 
and  to  the  flank  of  the  latter.  Should  they  disco- 
ver the  enemy  in  face,  immediately  notice  will  be 
sent  to  the  lines.  The  general  commanding  on  the 
spot  will  immediately  order  the  signals  for  forming 
in  order  of  ba.ttl«,  which  will  be  the  beat  "  to  arms.** 

All  signals  will  be  immediately  repeated  by  all 
the  drums  of  the  line  —  the  signal  for  the  whole  to 
halt,  is  the  retreat.  Drums  will  be  distributed  along 
the  heads  of  companies,  and  the  taps  occasionally 
given  to  regulate  their  march. 

Lieutenant-Colonels  Ball  and  Simrall  are  to  keep 
the  general  constantly  advised  of  the  discoveries 
made  by  the  advanced  parties.  Where  it  shall  be- 
come necessary  for  the  corps  of  Ball  and  Simrall  to 
retire,  they  will  form  on  the  flank,  or  in  the  rear  of 
Mc Arthur's  and  Calmes's  brigades,  and  receive  the 
orders  of  the  brigadiers  respectively. 

Brigadier-General  Cass  will  designate  such  offi- 
cers as  he  may  deem  proper,  to  assist  Captain  El- 
liot, of  the  navy,  in  the  arrangement  of  the  boats, 
and  the  debarkation  of  the  troops.  The  general 
will  be  the  signal  for  the  whole  to  move.  By  com- 
mand,       (Signed) 

EDMUND  P.  GAINES, 

''    ■  Col.  Adj.  Gen. 

Truly  copied  from  the  original. 

Robert  Butler,  A.  A.  Adj.  Gen. 

Not' only  did  General  Cass  thus  distin<T!ii->li  him- 
self in  the  field,  but  he  acquired  a  celebrity  equally 
enviable  by  his  kindness  and  consideration  to  his 
men.  The  following  anecdote  derived  from  an  nn- 
doubted  authority,  best  illustrates  this  trait: 

"  While  a  number  of  old  soldiers  were  being  in- 


72 


LIFE    OF 


troduced  to  General  Cass,  one  of  our  citizens  ap- 
proached the  general,  and  asked  if  he  remembered 
iiim.  Upon  replying  that  he  did  not,  he  gave  the 
following  account  of  their  first  meeting: — *  In  the 
spring  of  1813,  Fort  Meigs  was  besieged  by  the 
British  and  Indians,  and  the  militia  of  Ohio  were 
called  out  to  march  to  the  relief  of  the  fort.  Gene- 
ral Cass  was  appointed  to  the  command.  Six  thou- 
sand assembled  at  Upper  Sandusky,  of  whom  two 
thousand  were  selected  to  proceed  on  to  the  fort. 
The  marshes  and  woods  were  filled  with  water, 
making  the  roads  almost  impassable.  The  com- 
manding general  had  not  yet  arrived,  but  was  daily 
expected.  On  the  second  day  of  the  march,  a  young 
soldier,  from  exposure  to  the  weather,  was  taken 
sick.  Unable  to  march  in  the  ranks,  he  followed 
along  in  the  rear.  When  at  a  distance  behind, 
attempting  with  diflSculty  to  keep  pace  with  his 
comrades,  two  oflScers  rode  along,  one  a  stranger, 
and  the  other  the  colonel  of  his  regiment.  On  pass- 
ing him,  the  colonel  remarked,  *  general,  that  poor 
fellow  there  is  sick;  he  is  a  good  fellow  though,  for 
he  refuses  to  go  back;  but  I  fear  that  the  Indians 
will  scalp  him,  or  the  crows  pick  him,  before  we 
get  to  Fort  Meigs.'  The  officer  halted,  and  dis- 
mounted from  his  horse.  When  the  young  soldier 
came  up,  he  addressed  him :  '  My  brave  boy,  you 
are  sick  and  tired,  I  am  well  and  strong;  mount  my 
horse  and  ride.*  The  soldier  hesitated.  *  Do  not 
wait,'  said  the  ofllicer;  and,  lifting  him  upon  his 
horse,  with  directions  to  ride  at  night  to  the  gene- 
ral's tent,  he  proceeded  on  foot  to  join  the  army. 
At  night,  the  young  soldier  rode  to  the  tent;  where 
ho  was  met  by  llie  general  with  a  cheerful  wel- 
come, which  he  repaid  with  tears  of  gratitude.  That 
officer  was  General  Cass,  and  the  young  soldier  was 
the  person  addressing  him,  our  worthy  fellow-citi- 
zen, John  Laylin.'  The  general,  remembering  the 
circumstance,   immediately    recognised    him."    Mr. 


GENERAL    CASS. 


73 


Laylin  remarked,  *  general,  that  act  was  not  done 
for  the  world  to  look  upon ;  it  was  done  in  the  woods, 
with  but  three  to  witness  it." 

This  anecdote  was  elicited  with  others,  at  a  large 
and  spontaneous  meeting  held  at  Norwalk,  Ohio,  in 
September  last,  to  advocate  General  Cass  as  a  candi- 
date for  the  presidency.  At  the  same  time  and  place, 
it  was  stated  by  the  late  Colonel  Hamer,  "  that  on 
one  of  General  Cass's  recent  tours,  his  carriage  was 
one  day  stopped  by  a  man  who,  addressing  the  gene- 
ral, said :  *  I  can't  let  you  pass  without  speaking  to 
you.  You  don't  know  me,  general.'  General  Cass 
replied  that  he  did  not.  *  Well,  sir,  (said  he)  I  was 
the  first  man  in  your  regiment  to  jump  out  of  the 
boat  on  the  Canadian  shore.'  'No,  you  were  not, 
(said  General  CasS;)  I  was  the  first  man  myself  on 
shore.'  *True,  (said  the  other;)  I  jumped  out  first 
into  the  river  to  get  ahead  of  you ;  but  you  held  me 
back,  and  got  on  shore  ahead  of  me." 

The  battle  of  the  Thames  put  an  end  to  the  North- 
western campaign,  and  separated  the  force  of  the 
enemy,  but  all  difficulty  was  far  from  being  removed. 
The  advance  of  General  Harrison's  army  had  again 
put  the  United  States  in  possession  of  Michigan,  and 
also  given  them  the  control  of  a  large  portion  of 
Upper  Canada.  To  the  command  of  this  important 
district,  General  Cass  was  assigned  by  General  Har- 
rison, previous  to  the  withdrawal  of  the  liberating 
army.  On  the  9th  of  October,  1813,  Mr.  Madison 
appointed  him  civil  governor  of  Michigan,  his  accep- 
tance of  which  post,  of  course,  vacated  his  commis- 
sion as  brigadier-general.  This  was  an  office  of 
immense  power,  and  necessE^rily  so.  At  the  head 
both  of  the  civil  and  military  establishments  of  an 
almost  limitless  region,  filled  with  hostile  Indians 
and  frequented  by  British  emissaries,  he  was  often 
called  on  to  exercise  his  authority  in  both  capacities. 

The  country  was  left  almost  without  permanent 
defenders,  and  the  Indians  in  predatory  bands  ad- 


74  L 1  F  B     O  P       '  • 

vanced  almost  under  the  guns  of  Detroit,  while  per- 
sons were  killed  within  view  of  the  sentinels  of  the 
garrison.  To  put  an  end  to  and  punish  such  out- 
rages, on  three  occasions,  bodies  of  mounted  volun- 
teers were  collected,  and  under  the  immediate  com- 
mand of  General  Cass,  employed  against  the  marau- 
ders. This  was  a  most  dangerous  service,  and  one 
which  led  to  little  renown,  yet  was  most  important. 
It  is  probable,  that  of  all  the  North  American  tribes, 
except,  perhaps,  the  Seminoles,  those  which  at  that 
day  were  strewn'^long  the  Northern  lakes,  were  at 
the  same  time,  the  most  astute  and  courageous. 
The  marches  through  the  wilderness  were  perpe- 
tually beset  with  ambuscades,  and  the  strictest 
military  precaution  was  necessary  to  guard  against 
surprise  and  massacre.  On  more  than  one  occasion 
the  general  was  in  danger,  having  seen  his  servant, 
who  rode  immediately  behind  him,  fired  on,  and  at- 
tacked by  an  Indian  with  a  clubbed  rifle :  the  as- 
sailant killed  with  difliculty,  after  a  hand-to-hand 
eontest. 

Peace  came  at  last  and  put  an  end  to  this  contest, 
the  bitterness  of  which  had  been  previously  allayed 
by  a  treaty  entered  into  in  July  1814,  at  Greenville, 
Ohio,  with  the  Indians  who  had  borne  arms  against 
the  United  States  during  the  war.  The  commis- 
sioners to  eflfect  this  were  General  Harrison  and 
General  Cass ;  and  the  high  talent  and  reputation 
of  the  two,  doubtless,  exerted  much  influence  on  the 
savage  negociators,  who,  during  General  Cass's  ad- 
ministration of  the  government  of  Michigan,  had 
learned  that  he  was  not  a  man  to  be  trifled  with, 
and  that  they  could  not  devastate  the  settlemonts 
with  impunity.  The  negociators  were  so  far  suc- 
cessful, that  a  peace  was  concluded,  and  a  formida- 
ble body  of  the  Indians,  who  had  been  led  astray 
by  British  intrigue,  were  actually  mustered  into  the 
service  of  the  United  States  as  auxiliaries,  and  ac- 
companied General  Cass  to  Detroit.     How  peculiar 


GENERAL     CASS. 


75 


General  Cass's  condition  subsequently  became,  may 
be  estimated  from  the  fact  that,  in  all  Michigan, 
there  was  but  one  company  of  regular  soldiers,  who, 
with  the  unembodied  militia  and  the  auxiliaries 
mentioned  above,  were  expected  to  defend  the 
country  against  the  numerous  Indians  who  were 
perpetually  on  the  alert  to  resume  their  pld  attitude 
of  war  and  defiance. 

Immediately  on  the  conclusion  of  peace,  General 
Cass  moved  his  family  to  Detroit,  where,  except 
when  called  thence  by  public  service,  he  has  re- 
gularly resided. 


7e 


LI  FE    OF 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Michigan  after  the  War  —  CommiaBioner  to  treat  with  the 
Indians  —  Improved  condition  of  Michigan^  etc  —  Literary 
Mattera 

The  condition  of  Michigan  on  the  termination  of 
the  war  was  peculiar,  and  the  country  presented 
one  scene  of  devastation,  so  that  when  the  inhabit- 
ants who  had  been  driven  off  by  the  invaders  re- 
turned, they  found  but  the  wrecks  of  their  former 
homes.  The  original  white  colonists  of  the  country 
had  been  French,  and  from  Montreal  and  Quebec. 
The  Jesuit  fathers  had  passed  to  Detroit,  on  their 
way  to  achieve  the  vastest  discovery  after  that  of 
Columbus  and  Balboa,  which  had  been  made  on  the 
continent.  When  Henepin  and  his  companions  dis- 
covered the  Mississippi,  Detroit  acquired  new  im- 
portance to  that  it  previously  possessed  from  its 
commanding  the  passage  to  lakes  Huron,  Michigan, 
and  Superior,  and  because  it  was  a  connecting  link 
in  the  chain  of  fortifications  which  shut  in  the  then 
British  colonies.  Its  possession  after  the  capture  of 
Fort  Duquesne,  became  yet  more  important,  and 

freat  efforts  were  made  by  De  Levi  and  the  other 
'rench  governors  of  Canada,  to  promote  its  coloni- 
zation. When  Canada  fell  into  the  hands  of  Great 
Britain,  the  post  lost  none  of  its  value,  and  acquired 
a  great  numerical  strength  from  the  emigration  of 
the  peculiar  population  which  even  now  distinguishes 
Upper  from  Lower  Canada. 

The  treaty  of  peace  which  terminated  the  •revo- 
lutionary war,  gave  all  the  country  south  of  the  lakes 
to  the  United  States;  yet,  for  a  long  time,  the  British 
garrisons  remained,  and  became  the  seat  of  the  in- 


GENERAL     CASS. 


77 


trigues  which  produced  the  hostilities  in  which  St. 
Clair  was  so  disastrously  defeated,  and  which  were 
terminated  by  the  brilliant  victories  of  Wayne. 

Under  these  circumstances  there  had  been  but 
little  emigration  thither  from  the  United  States,  and 
the  people  continued  still  almost  purely  Canadian. 
The  usual  privileges  and  franchises  which  had  been 
conferred  on  the  pe6ple  of  the  other  territories,  had 
not  been  extended  to  Michigan,  the  government  of 
which  continued  purely  military.  The  British  in- 
vasion had  not  lessened  the  evil  of  this  state  of 
things,  and  during  it  the  laws  had  become  silent, 
morals  had  suffered,  and  great  prudence  was  neces- 
sary in  the  government  td  restore  order  and  industry. 
It  became  the  duty  of  General  Cass  to  establish  a 
civil  government,  and  he  did  this  almost  unassisted. 
To  give  an  idea  how  completely  he  was  unaided 
in  this  labour,  it  will  only  be  necessary  to  state,  that 
the  territory  had  no  deliberative  assembly,  and  that 
the  legislative  power  resided  in  the  governor,  assist- 
ed by  the  judges  of  the  district  courts  of  the  United 
States,  who  had  been  appointed  by  Mr.  Madison  about 
the  same  time  he  had  received  his  civil  appointment. 
Though  the  depository  of  this  high  power,  altogether 
an  anomaly  in  our  country,  and  which  would  have 
flattered  the  vanity  of  a  feebler  mind.  General  Cass 
was  unceasing  in  his  efforts  to  procure  for  Michigan 
the  privilege  of  sending  a  delegate  to  the  Congress 
of  the  United  States,  and  the  authorization  of  the 
sale  of  the  public  lands  in  Michigan.  It  was  not, 
however,  until  1819,  that  these  changes  were  effect- 
ed, which,  of  course,  limited  his  own  power,  but 
contributed  much  to  the  prosperity  of  Michigan. 
The  judgment  of  the  people  in  relation  to  its  rulers 
is  infallible;  and  no  better  evidence  of  General 
Cass's  purity  and  ability  can  be  given,  than  that, 
under  seven  successive  administrations,  he  was  re- 
nominated on  the  legal  expiration  of  his  term  of 
service,  and  each  time  unanimously  confirmed  by 
7* 


19 


LIFE    OF 


the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  without  one  re- 
monstrance from  the  lar^e  territory  over  which  he 
presided,  and  which  had,  under  his  care,  rapidly 
thriven  and  prospered. 

The  war  had  left  much  bitterness  of  feeling  in 
the  minds  of  the  many  Indian  tribes  within  Michi- 
gan against  the  United  States.  This  was  natural 
enough.  The  great  principle  of  their  moral  organi- 
zation was  a  feeling  of  the  justice  of  revenge  for 
injuries, —  not  by  any  means  a  peculiarity  of  the 
red  man, —  and  they  could  not  forget  their  sufferings 
at  Tippecanoe,  the  Thames,  and  Fort  Meigs,  where 
their  bravest  chiefs  and  warriors  had  fallen.  Every 
one,  therefore,  knew  that  the  peace  concluded  at 
Greenville,  Ohio,  in  1814,  was  even  on  the  part  of 
the  tribes  who  participated  in  it  but  a  truce,  the 
t)onds  of  which,  on  the  first  opportunity,  would  be 
thrown  off.  The  chief  part  of  General  Cass's  duty, 
therefore,  was  to  attempt  to  convert  this  truce  into  a 
solid  and  lasting  ^  ice,  and  to  endeavour  to  induce 
the  Indians  to  ^llow  their  own  true  interests,  which 
could  only  be  attained  under  the  protection  of  and 
not  by  hostility  to  the  United  States. 

During  the  year  1815,  Governor  Cass  was,  with 
his  old  companion  in  arms,  Colonel  McArthur, 
appointed  to  represent  the  United  States  in  a  talk 
or  conference  to  be  held  with  various  Indian  tribes 
at  Fort  Meigs.  The  conference  resulted  in  a  treaty 
by  which  the  Indians  ceded  to  the  United  States 
the  title  to  the  valuable  lands  composing  the  North- 
western portion  of  the  state  of  Ohio.  During  the 
next  year,  another  conference  was  held  at  St. 
Mary's,  by  which  the  Pottawatamies  and  other  minor 
tribes  coded  to  the  United  States  much  valuable 
land  within  the  limits  of  Indiana.  In  1819,  he  pre 
sided  at  another  conference  at  Saginaw,  where  the 
Indians  in  Michigan  ceded  to  the  United  Stales 
large  and  valuable  tracts  of  land.  By  these  impor- 
tant treaties,  and  others  explanatory  of  them,  the 


OENERAI.    CASS. 


79 


total  number  of  which  was  twenty-one,  General 
Cass  acquired  for  the  United  States  one  hundred 
millions  of  acres  of  land,  now  teeming  with  an  ac- 
tive and  prosperous  population. 

It  has  now  become  the  custom  to  scoff  at  Indian 
treaties,  and  the  history  of  the  past  unfortunately 
exhibits  too  much  reason  for  looking  on  them  gene- 
rally, if  not  fraudulent,  yet  as  not  contracted  with 
the  solemn  faith  which  should  characterize  obliga- 
tions of  their  nature.  It  is,  however,  very  certain 
that  the  Indians  have  never  submitted  in  silence 
when  they  have  been  wronged,  and  in  no  instance 
do  we  hear  any  complaint  made,  either  by  them  or 
in  their  behalf,  of  wrong  from  the  hands  of  General 
Cass.  During  these  years,  and  subsequently.  Gene- 
ral Cass  participated  in  many  eventful  scenes,  the 
narration  of  which,  though  interesting,  must  be 
omitted ;  one  of  which,  however,  was  most  peculiar 
and  too  striking  to  be  neglected — 

In  the  year  1820,  at  the  instance  of  General  Cass, 
Mr.  Calhoun,  who  was  then  secretary  at  war,  au- 
thorized an  expedition  to  the  Upper  Lakes  for  the 
purpose  of  passing  from  the  western  extremity  of 
Lake  Superior  to  the  Mississippi,  with  a  view  to 
explore  that  then  unknown  land,  and  open  a  com- 
munication with  the  Indians  who  inhabited  it  and 
the  shores  of  the  noble  lakes  through  which  they 
must  pass  to  reach  Fond  du  Lac.  Accompanying 
the  party,  besides  Captain  Douglas  of  the  United 
States  engineer  corps,  were  several  men  of  science, 
among  whom  was  the  Indian  archajoloijist  and  his- 
torian  Schoolcraft,  who  were  charged  to  make  an 
elaborate  and  scientific  report  on  the  topography  of 
the  country,  its  mineral  and  probable  agricultural 
resources.  The  government  having  determined  to 
establish  a  military  post  at  the  Sault  or  rapids  of 
St.  Marie,  Governor  Cass  was  authorize<l  to  inform 
the  chiefs  and  warriors  of  the  circumstance.  The 
Indians  of  the  Sault  of  St.  Marie  belonged  to  the 


80 


LIFE    OF 


alliance  of  Sioux,  Winnebagoes,  Ottawas,  and  Ojib- 
ways,  who  had,  on  the  17tl»  of  August,  1812,  sur- 
prised the  garrison  of  Macinac,  in  co-operations 
"with  a  British  and  Canadian  force,  on  which  occa- 
sion the  chief  of  the  band  had  been  conspicuous. 
When  the  Indians  had  assembled  in  council,  the 
resolution  of  the  President  was  formally  announced. 
Under  the  influence  of  their  chief,  who  yet  continued 
friendly  to  the  English,  if  he  was  not  in  their  pay, 
they  immediately  left  the  council  fire,  and  showed 
their  hostility  most  decidedly  by  conveying  their 
women  and  children  across  the  river  which  sepa- 
rated them  from  Canada;  at  the  same  time  they 
hoisted  a  British  flag,  and  prepared  for  fight.  Ge- 
neral Cass  had  with  him  only  an  escort  of  a  subal- 
tern's guard,  but  the  act  was  one  which,  if  suttered 
to  pass  unrcbuked,  might  ultimately  occasion  the 
most  disastrous  consequences.  He  therefore,  ac- 
companied by  no  one  but  an  interpreter,  proceeded 
at  once  to  the  Indian  position,  and  with  his  own 
hands  struck  the  British  ensign.  lie  then  told  the 
Indians  promptly  and  decidedly,  and  in  a  manner 
adapted  to  their  own  habits  of  thought  and  ex- 
pression, that  they  stood  within  the  United  States, 
and  that  no  other  flag  would  be  permitted  to  wave 
within  its  territory.  He  then  returned  to  his  escort 
bearing  with  him  the  flag  which  British  oflicials  yet 
encouraged  their  savage  allies  of  the  war  of  1812 
to  prostitute.  The  reports  of  this  expedition,  pub- 
lished by  order  of  Congress,  from  the  pens  of  Cap- 
tain Douglas  and  Mr.  Schoolcraft,  are  of  the  most 
interesting  character  possible  in  unfolding  the  im- 
mense resources  of  the  country  north  of  Illinois  and 
west  of  lake  Superior.  In  other  respects  it  was  not 
less  important ;  treaties  which  subsisted  unbroken 
until  the  Black  Hawk  war,  having  been  formed  not 
only  with  the  Indians  at  the  Sault,  but  with  other 
tribes  of  the  immense  northern  hive. 

The  presence  of  the  Sauks  and  Foxes  on  the  Rock 


OBNERAL     CASS. 


81 


River,  west  of  lake  Michigan,  and  the  fact  that  the 
Winnebasoes  and  other  tribes  actually  had  posses- 
sion of  the  territory  west  of  lake  Superior,  now 
constituting  the  stt^e  of  Wisconsin,iong  kept  settlers 
from  it,;  but  the  result  of  this  exploration  was 
deeply  impressed  on  the  popular  mind,  so  that  as 
soon  as  these  dilHculties  were  removed,  a  population 
rushed  in,  and  Wisconsin,  previously  known  only 
from  the  lead  mines  in  its  south-western  corner,  be- 
came at  once  the  seat  of  a  thriving  agricultural 
industry. 

In  1821,  Governor  Cass  was  again  employed  in 
the  negotiation  of  the  treaty  of  Chicago.  On  this 
occasion,  so  feeble  was  the  transportation  across  the 
present  populous  states  of  Ohio  and  Indiana,  that 
tie  was  forced  to  embark  at  Detroit  in  a  canoe  of 
bark,  pass  thence  to  the  mouth  of  the  Maumcc, 
which  he  ascended  to  the  portage  between  that 
river  and  the  Wabash,  which  he  descended  to  its 
confluence  with  the  Ohio.  Thence  he  proceeded  by 
St.  Louis  up  the  Illinois  river,  and  across  the  Port- 
age to  Chicago.  At*  that  place  a  treaty  was  nego- 
tiated with  the  Pottawatamie  and  other  tribes,  by 
which  the  right  to  an  immense  tract  of  land  in 
Michigan  south  of  Grand  River  was  acquired.  This 
was  a  trip  of  great  hardship,  the  severity  of  which 
the  traveller  over  these  states  at  present  can  with 
difRculty  conceive  of  He  was  forced  to  encamp  at 
night  in  the  wilderness  and  was  exposed  to  all  the 
severity  of  the  weather. 

In  1823,  Governor  Cass  was  called  upon  to  nego- 
tiate yet  another  treaty,  advantageous  both  to  the 
Indian  and  the  United  States,  by  which  a  valuable 
tract  of  land  in  Muskingum  county,  Ohio,  was  ceded 
to  the  United  States. 

In  1825,  Mr.  Adams  appointed  Governor  Cass 
and  the  celebrated  William  Clark  of  Missouri  com- 
missioners to  treat  with  the  Sioux,  Winnebagoes, 
Mcnorainies,  Chippewas,  Ottawas,  Pottawatamies, 


LIFE     OF 

Sauks  and  Foxes,  and  lowas.  During  his  tour  in 
1821,  previously  described,  General  Cass  had  ob- 
served that  many,  if  not  all  of  the  disputes  among 
the  Indians  occurred  from  the  undefined  nature  of 
their  boundaries)  which  were  only  ascertained  by 
traditions,  and  that  in  many  cases  where  two  tribes 
were  abrasions  from  some  old  race,  in  one  dis- 
trict the  authority  of  the  rightful  governors  could 
not  be  positively  ascertained.  The  conference  re- 
ferred to  was  called  for  the  purpose  of  correcting 
this  great  evil,  and  if  possible  to  fix  the  limits  of  the 
hunting  grounds  and  the  jurisdiction  of  each  tribe. 
To  this  scheme  much  opposition  was.  interposed,  as 
each  tribe  apprehended  its  own  power  would  be 
lessened  and  that  of  its  neighbours  iiioreased.  The 
United  States  wished  no  concession,  and  obtained 
none,  yet  effected  much  for  the  good  of  the  country 
— peace  being  effected  between  the  Sauks,  Sioux, 
Chippcways  and  loways,  and  the  possibility  of  fu- 
ture convicts  much  lessened. — Every  intestine  Indian 
disturbance  will  always  agitate  and  affect  the  pros- 
ppiity  of  the  frontier  nearest  the  scene  of  trouble, 
and  the  diminution  of  these  troubles  must  always 
be  grateful  to  the  peaceful  and  industrious  frontiers- 
man, on  such  occasions  not  only  liable  to  Indian 
outrage,  but  al^o  to  injury  from  the  houseless  vaga- 
bonds, refugees  and  others  always  ready  to  make 
an  Indiaii  war  a  pretext  for  crime. 

At  this  council,  which  was  held  at  Prairie  du 
Chion,  an  immense  concourse  of  chiefs  and  wferriors 
assembled,  the  number  of  which  has  been  variously 
estimated.  In  full  costume  and  paint,  the  Sauks  and 
Foxes  ascended  the  Mississippi  to  Prairie  du  Chien, 
passing  the  town  with  their  canoes  in  line,  singing 
their  wild  but  not  unmusical  war  songs.  Tribe 
after  tribe  assembled  at  the  spot  appointed  for  the 
council,  in  which  were  almost  all  the  notables  of 
the  Indians  of  that  region,  among  whom  were  Keo- 
kuk and  Black  Hawk,  then   in  the  prime  of  their 


OENEHAL     CASS. 


83 


lives,  side  by  side  with  the  old  warriors  of  1812, 
who  on  more  than  one  occasion  had  fought  side  by- 
side  with  British  veterans,  whom  they  had  often 
surpassed,  in  support  of  the  pretensions  of  England. 
The  treaty  lasted  several  days,  and  was  satisfactory 
to  both  parties.  One  of  Governor  Cass*  co-commis- 
sioners. Colonel  McKenney,  has  given  a  picturesque 
account  of  this  expedition.  On  the  reti  rn  of  Gov- 
ernor Cass,  another  treaty  on  the  Wabash  was 
effected,  by  which  a  large  tract  of  land  was  ceded 
in  the  limits  of  Indiana. 

In  1827,  treaties  were  negotiated  at  Green  Bay 
and  at  Saint  Joseph's,  under  the  agency  of  Governor 
Cass.  On  his  arrival  ut  Green  Bay,  on  the  western 
side  of  lake  Michigan,  for  the  purpose  of  treating 
with  the  ^Vinnebagoes,  who  were  to  have  joined  in 
the  negotiation,  he  was  informed  that  they  were 
embodying  rapidly  and  apparently  preparing  for 
war.  It  was  not  a  season  for  delay  or  hesitation, 
and  he  at  once  emb{;rked  in  a  birchen-bark  canoe, 
in  which  he  had  previously  passed  up  the  Maurnee 
and  Illinois  to  Chicago,  and  crossing  the  portage 
into  the  Wisconsin,  proceeded  at  once,  with  but  two 
or  three  voyagers,  to  the  encampment  of  the  Win- 
nebagoes.  On  his  arrival  at  the  bank,  he  landed 
alone  and  sought  without  effect  to  speak  to  them. 
After  several  useless  attempts  to  confer  with  them,  he 
retired  towards  his  canoe,  and  had  no  sooner  turned 
his  back  than  a  young  warrior  took  deliberate  aim 
at  him  and  attempted  to  fire.  The  piece  did  not 
explode,  and  convinced  of  the  hostility  of  the  tribe 
by  these  significant  acts,  he  immediately  left  them. 
He  went  down  the  river,  and  at  Prairie  du  Ciiien 
found  the  whole  population  in  the  greatest  alarm; 
a  few  days  before  a  large  batteau  had  been  attacked 
by  a  hostile  party,  and  the  crew  had  with  difHculty 
beaten  o[f  their  assailants,  and  a  family  had  been 
murdered  and  scalped  in  the  village.  After  orga- 
nizing the  people  for  their  own  defence,  (the  place 


84 


LIFE    OF 


was  then  ungarrisoned)  he  hurried  to  St.  Louis, 
whence  a  large  detachment  of  troops  was  at  once 
sent  to  the  scene  of  difficulty,  and  reinforced  by  a 
body  of  Illinois  militia  and  troops  from  Michigan; 
the  members  of.  the  tribe  who  had  committed  the 
outrages  were  surrendered  and  tranquillity  restored. 
On  this  tour,  Governor  Cass  had  travelled  in  an 
open  boat  eighteen  hundred  miles.  To  his  exertions, 
and  the  ability  of  the  distinguished  officer  in  com- 
mand of  the  troops,  must  be  attributed  the  preser- 
vation of  the  frontier  from  a  border  war. 

Early  in  1828,  Governor  Cass,  in  conjunction  with 
Colonel  Pierre  Menard,  was  again  called  upon  to 
treat  with  various  tribes  of  Indians,  for  the  posses- 
sion of  the  mineral  lands  on  the  Mississippi  south 
of  the  Wisconsin.  The  seat  of  the  council  was 
Green  Bay,  where  the  commissioners  arrived  late  in 
the  summer;  but,  on  the  25th  of  August,  formed  a 
treaty  or  concordat,  permitting  the  Indians  to  occupy 
the  lands  in  which  were  the  lead  mines.  During 
the  next  year  a  more  formal  treaty  was,  according 
to  the  stipulations  of  the  concordat,  to  be  held,  for 
the  purchase  of  the  whole  mineral  country,  and  in 
the  intervening  time  no  white  man  was  to  cross  a 
given  line  to  dig  for  ore.  One  clause  provided,  that 
for  the  trespasses  already  committed,  the  aboriginal 
possessors  were  to  be  paid  $20,000.  This  agree-" 
ment  was  ratified  by  the  Senate  and  the  President, 
January  7,  1829. 

In  1822,  General  Cass  had  effected  the  organiza- 
tion of  a  legislative  council,  which  relieved  him  of 
an  onerous  post,  his  duties,  and  permitted  him  to 
attend  to  his  scheme  of  Indian  pacification,  to  which 
he  contributed  more  than  any  living  man. 


GENERAL    CASS. 


85 


CHAPTER  V. 


General  Cass's  Civil  Services — Literary  History — John  Hunter — 
General  Jackson  —  Nullification  —  Alabama  —  Black  Hawk 
War — Creek  War—Seminole  War — Minister  to  France. 


The  messages  of  Governor  Cass  to  the  council  of* 
Miciiigan,  have  attracted  general  attention,  and  but 
for  the  fact  that  they  relate  to  merely  local  matters, 
are  well  worthy  of  consideratioa  They  are  written  in 
a  style  which  has  commanded  general  attention  on 
account  of  its  uniform  chastity  and  dignity,  exhibit- 
ing a  rare  cultivation  apparently  incompatible  with 
the  fact,  that  he  had  reaped  the  benefit  of  no  college 
lore,  but  necessarily  had  to  rely  on  the  innate  powers 
of  his  own  mind,  called  into  action  by  the  emergen- 
cies, among  which,  the  fortunes  of  his  early  life 
were  cast. 

The  general  pacification  of  the  whole  west,  how- 
ever, allowed  General  Cass  an  opportunity  to  attend 
to  literary  pursuits,  and  to  establish  his  reputation 
on  as  high  a  pinnacle  as  a  man  of  letters,  as  he  had 
))reviousiy  done  as  a  soldier  and  negotiator.  Long, 
however,  before  this  time,  in  1825,  a  narrative  had 
bcH'fi  published  by  a  person  called  John  Hunter, 
which  from  its  ingenuity,  almost  recalls  the  famous 
Ireland  forgeries.  John  Hunter  professed  himself 
to  be  a  person  of  white  extraction,  who  had  been 
stolen,  or  captured  while  young,  by  a  war-party  of 
tin;  great  Wausache,  or  Osajre  tribe,  and  adopted 
l)y  thetn.  In  a  narrative  of  his  life,  he  professed  to 
pivo  an  rsquise  of  his  own  adventures  and  of  the  his- 
tory of  the  Osage.  The  book  has  since  been  acknow- 
8 


LIFE     OF 

leclgcd  as  a  palpable  forgery,  but  at  ihe  time  it  made 
a  great  impression  on  the  popular  mind.  Governor 
Cass,  from  his  great  intercourse  and  familiarity  with 
the  Indian  character,  was  not  to  be  imposed  upon, 
and  at  once  detected  its  many  errors.  These  he 
exposed  in  an  article  in  the  fiftieth  number  of  the 
North  American  Review,  which  at  the  time  attracted 
universal  attention  from  its  peculiarly  eloquent  style, 
and  the  engrossing  interest  of  its  subject.  The 
whole  article  was  subsequently  translated  into  Ger- 
man, and  printed  in  more  than  one  of  the  reviews 
of  that  country,  which,  perhaps,  in  a  literary  point 
ftf  view,  is  the  most  pi*olific  and  most  critical  of  all 
Europe.  In  yet  another  article,  he  alluded  to  the 
history  of  the  aboriginal  race,  referring  to  its  his- 
tory and  statistics  in  a  peculiarly  happy  style,  which 
not  only  commanded  the  attention  of  the  antiquarian 
but  of  the  student  of  general  literature.  This  ar- 
ticle was  printed  in  the  fifty-fifth  number  of  the 
North  American  Review. 

Not  only  did  General  Cass  in  person  attend  to 
literary  pursuits,  but  amid  his  multifarious  engage- 
ments, he  contrived  to  excite  attention  to  similar 
subjects  among  the  number  of  young  and  enter- 
prising men  who,  under  his  auspices,  flocked  to 
Michigan,  in  search  of  fame  and  fortune.  He  was 
mainly  instrumental  in  forming  the  Historical  Society 
of  Michigan,  the  first  annual  address  to  which  he 
df'livered,  in  which  he  called  attention  to  the  pecu- 
liarly picturesque  and  strange  history  of  Michigan, 
previous  to  its  occupation  by  the  United  States. 
This  address  was  delivered  in  1829. 

The  reputation  of  General  Cass  had  extended  far 
and  wide,  and,  at  the  instance  of  the  alumni  of  Ha- 
milton College  in  New  York,  he  delivered  the  anni- 
versary address.  Colleiin  haranjiues  and  oraliony 
delivered  on  the  fourth  of  July  are  usually  cfmsi^'er 
rd  beyond  the  pale  of  criticism,  but  the  high  .one 
diumfied  research  and  character  of  this  oratu^H,  al 


r^- 


GENERAL    CASS. 


87 


most  places  it  above  it.  So  often  have  honorary 
degrees  been  prostituted  by  being  conferred  on  un- 
worthy persons,  that  we  might  well  omit  stating, 
that  Mr.  Cass  received  from  this  University  tlie  iio- 
norary  degree  of  LL.  D.  Previous  to  this,  he  had 
been  appointed  a  member  of  the  American  l*hilo- 
sopliical  Society  of  Philadelphia,  of  the  New  Hamp- 
shire, Rhode  Island  and  Indiana  Historical  societies, 
of  the  American  Antiquarian  Society,  and  of  the 
American  Institute.  On  the  records  of  the  proceed- 
ings of  each  of  these  societies  the  name  of  Governor 
Cass  will  always  be  found  in  honourable  connection 
with  subject?  of  great  national  interest. 

On  the  fourth  of  March,  1829,  General  Jackson 
was  inaugurated  as  President  of  the  United  States, 
and  one  of  his  earliest  official  acts  was  to  nominate 
to  the  Senate^  Lewis  Cass  as  Governor  of  Michigan; 
on  which  occasion,  for  the  seventh  time,  he  was  con- 
firmed. Immediately  on  the  entrance  of  General 
.Jackson  on  the  discharge  of  his  official  duties,  he 
made  the  following  nominations,  which  were  con- 
firmed unanimously  by  the  Senate.  Martin  Van 
Buren  o(  New  York,  was  appointed  Secretary  of 
State;  Samuel  D.  Ingham,  of  Pennsylvania,  of  the 
Treasury;  John  H.  Eaton,  of  Tennessee,  of  War; 
John  Branch,  of  North  Carolina,  of  the  Navy ;  J. 
McPherson  Berrien,  Attorney-General ;  and  William 
T.  Barry,  of  Kentucky,  Postmaster-Gkineral. 

This  cabinet  had  but  a  brief  existence,  and  during 
the  months  of  April  and  June,  1831,  in  consequence 
of  a  social  misunderstanding  and  want  of  harmony 
in  the  cabinet,  ail  except  Mr.  Barry  resigned,  and 
a  new  cabinet  was  organized,  as  follows:  Edward 
Livingston,  of  Louisiana,  Secretary  of  State;  Louis 
M'Lane,  of  DeUv^are,  Secretary  of  the  Treasury; 
Lewis  Cass,  of  Oiiio,  Hecretary  of  War ;  Levi  Wood- 
bury, of  New  Hampsfiire,  Secretary  of  the  Navy  ; 
lloger  B.  Taney,  of  Maryland,  Attorney-General; 


mf  LIFE    OF 

and  William  T.  Barry,  of  Kentucky,  Postmaster- 
General,  continued. 

This  cabinet  was  not  only  superior  to  that  which 
preceded  it,  but  might  fairly  be  compared,  in  point 
of  talent  and  ability,  with  most  of  those  of  previous 
administrations ;  and  its  character  furnished  strong 
testimony  of  the  tribute  paid  to  public  opinion  in  the 
selection  of  his  advisers,  by  a  chief  magistrate  of 
great  personal  popularity. 

The  removal  of  General  Cass  from  Michigan  was 
greatly' regretted  by  the  people  of  the  territory  over 
whose  fortunes  he  had  long  presided,  and  whom  he 
had  conducted  from  almost  their  state's  infancy  to 

Siosperity  and  importance.  The  history  of  General 
ackson  has  now  passed  into  the  annals  of  the  coun- 
try and  of  the  world.  In  all  the  events  of  this  ad- 
ministration General  Cass  played  a  conspicuous  part. 
The  important  questions  of  the  bank,  of  the  removal 
of  the  deposits  and  the  consequences,  of  nullification, 
the  French  indemnification,  nullification,  and  the 
Creek  and  Cherokee  difficulties,  each  of  which  in- 
volved the  long  mooted  and  important  questions  of 
the  rights  of  the  state  and  federal  governments. 
These  questions,  and  all  similar  ones,  it  is  to  be 
hoped  are  now  and  for  ever  at  rest ;  and  it  is  far 
more  pleasant  to  forget  than  to  dwell  c^i  them. 
They  were  curious  in  their  nature  and  origin,  espe- 
cially from  the  fact  that  during  their  discussion  all 
party  lines  were  forgotten.  Mr.  Clay,  of  Kentucky, 
Mr.  Webster,  and  their  friends,  who  previously  and 
since  had  bitterly  opposed  General  Jackson,  siding 
with  him;  while  his  friends,  Mr.  Mangum,  of  North 
Carolina,  Mr.  Calhoun,  of  South  Carolina,  Mr.  Ty- 
ler, of  Virpinia,  and  hosts  of  others  who  previously 
had  been  his  strenuous  supporters,  arrayed  them- 
selves ajiainst  him. 

The  war  departniont,  over  which  Mr.  Cass  pre- 
sided during  the  nullification  diniculty,  was  especi- 
ally active,  and  the  correspondence  between  the 


OBNBRAL    CASS. 


89 


secretary  and  General  Scott,  who  commanded  the 
United  States  troops  sent  to  Charleston,  was  one  of 
the  most  interesting  and  instructive  ever  pui)lished 
in  the  country.  Each  of  these  high  officers  seemed 
aware  of  the  importance  of  the  crisis,  and  exerted 
their  high  talents  and  brilliant  acquirements  to  the 
true  interests  of  the  nation.  The  crisis  passed,  and 
to  no  other  two  men  in  the  United  States  are  the 
obligations  of  the  country  so  justly  due.  A  well 
known  writer  thus  succinctly  states  the  services  of 
General  Cass: 

"  At  the  portentous  period  of  nullification,  the 
military  orders  were  firm,  but  discreet;  and  it  ap- 
peared by  a  message  from  the  President,  in  answer 
to  a  call  upon  that  subject,  that  no  order  had  been 
at  any  time  given  to  *  resist  the  constituted  aul/iorities 
of  the  St(tie  of  South  Carolina^  within  the  chartered 
limits  of  said  State.*  The  orders  to  General  Scott 
informed  him  that,  *  should,  unfortunately,  a  crisis 
arise  when  the  ordinary  power  in  the  hands  of  the 
civil  officers  should  not  be  sufficient  for  the  execution 
of  the  lawSf  the  President  would  determine  the  course 
to  be  taken,  and  the  measures  to  be  adopted ;  till  then 
he  ivas  prohibited  from  acting.*  " 

Respect  to  law  has  ever  been  the  characteristic 
of  the  true  soldier,  and  this  feeling  was  at  this 
stormy  crisis  most  emphatically  expressed  by  the 
conduct  of  General  Cass.  At  a  later  day,  in  rela- 
tion to  the  difficulties  which  seemed  not  unlikely  to 
arise  between  the  United  States  and  Alabama,  in 
consequence  of  trespasses  on  the  lands  of  the  United 
States  acquired  from  the  Choctaw,  ('hickasaw,  and 
Muscogee  or  (-reek  Nations,  General  Cays  expressed 
the  most  law-fearing  opinions,  which  were  fully  sus- 
tained by  his  conduct.  No  clearer  evidence  of  this 
can  be  given  than  a  letter  from  the  office  of  the 
Secretary  of  War  to  the  now  distinguished  Colonel 
Mcintosh,  then  a  major  of  the  army,  datrd  Wash- 
ington city,  October  29,  1833.  It  was  as  follows: 
8* 


90 


LIFE    OF 


"  Sir — Your  letter  of  the  21st  instant  to  Major 
General  Macomb  has  beert  laid  before  me;  and,  in 
ansvvei^  I  have  to  inform  you  that  you  will  interpose 
no  obstacle  to  the  services  of  legal  process  upon  any 
officer  or  soldier  under  your  command,  whether  is- 
suing from  the  courts  of  the  State  of  Alabama,  or 
of  the  United  States.  On  the  contrary,  you  will 
give  all  necessary  facilities  to  the  execution  of  such 
process.  It  is  not  the  intention  of  tiie  President 
that  any  part  of  the  military  force  of  the  United 
States  should  be  brought  into  collision  with  the  civil 
authority.  In  all  questions  of  jurisdiction,  it  is  the 
duty  of  the  former  to  submit  to  the  latter,  and  no 
considerations  must  interfere  with  that  duty.  If, 
therefore,  an  officer  of  the  State,  or  of  the  United 
States,  come  with  legal  process  against  yourself,  or 
an  officer  or  soldier  of  your  garrison,  you  will  freely 
admit  him  within  your  post,  and  allow  him  to  exe- 
cute his  writ  undisturbed." 

Next  come  references  to  matters  of  routine  and 
service. 

For  many  years  the  bureau  of  the  Secretary  of 
War  had  not  been  called  on  to  conduct  any  active 
operations  on  a  large  scale,  and  the  army,  by  the 
gradual  exigencies  of  the  service,  had  been  distri- 
buted in  detachments  from  Maine  to  Louisiana,  on 
both  frontiers,  without  any  force  at  any  one  point 
sufficient  to  hold  in  check  a  score  of  mutinous  In- 
dians, or  to  restrain  even  a  band  of  marauding 
smugglers.  A  series  of  events  now,  however,  oc- 
curred, which  called  forth  all  the  energy  of  the  go- 
vernment, and  for  a  long  time  created  great  anxiety 
not  only  on  the  western  frontier  but  throughout  the 
United  States.  From  the  treaty  of  peace  contracted 
in  1814,  the  Winnebagoes,  the  Spuk,  and  Foxes,  had 
been,  though  quiet,  far  from  being  friendly  to  the 
government.  At  various  times  they  had  been  anx- 
ious for  war,  which  had  been  prevented  only  by 
great  moderation  on  the  part  of  the  officials  of  the 


GENERAL    CASS. 


91 


United  States,  and  had  remained  under  the  influ- 
ence of  chiefs  notoriously  friendly  to  Great  Britain, 
and  therefore  hostile  to  the  government  under  which 
they  lived.  In  1832,  however,  soon  after  he  had 
entered  on  the  discharge  of  his  functions,  the  contest 
known  as  the  Black-Hawk  war  began.  Terminated 
by  the  brilliant  affair  of  the  Bad-Axe,  by  General 
Atkinson,  and  the  admirable  arrangements  of  Gene- 
ral Scott,  it  remains  a  trophy  of  the  good  manage- 
ment of  the  department,  and  of  the  military  talcntP 
of  those  distinguished  officers. 

General  Cass  in  his  annual  report,  dated  Novem- 
ber 25,  1832,  to  the  President,  thus  speaks  of  this 
campaign : 

"  General  Atkinson,  with  the  regular  troops  and 
militia  under  his  command,  pursued  the  Indians 
through  a  country  very  difficult  to  be  penetrated, 
of  which  little  was  known,  and  where  much  exer- 
tion was  required  to  procure  regular  supplies. 
These  circumstances  necessarily  delayed  the  opera- 
tions, and  were  productive  of  great  responsibility  to 
the  commanding  officer,  and  of  great  sufferings  and 
privations  to  all  employed  in  this  harassing  warfare. 
The  Indians,  however,  were  driven  from  their  fast- 
nesses, and  fled  towards  the  Mississippi,  with  the 
intention  of  seeking  r^uge  in  the  country  west  of 
that  river.  They  were  immediately  followed  by 
General  Atkinson,  with  a  mounted  force,  overtaken, 
and  completely  vanquished.  The  arrangements  of 
'thij  commanding  general,  as  well  in  the  pursuit  as 
in  tite  action,  were  prompt  and  judicious,  and  the 
conduct  of  the  officers  and  men  was  exemplary. 
The  campaign  terminated  in  the  unqualified  submis- 
sion of  the  hostile  party,  and  in  the  adoption  of 
measures  for  the  permanent  security  of  the  frontiers, 
and  the  result  has  produced  upon  the  Indians  of  that 
region  a  salutary  impression,  which  it  is  to  be 
hoped  will  prevent  the  recurrence  of  similar  scenes." 

On  the  2rnh  of  October,  1832,  General  Macomb 


92 


LtPB    OP 


transmitted  to  General  Atkinson  the  following  letter 
from  the  Secretary  of  War. 

Depnrtment  of  War,  Oct.  24th,  1832. 

Sir — The  return  of  the  President  to  the  seat  of 
government,  enables  me  to  communicate  to  you  his 
sentiments  in  relation  to  the  operations  and  result 
of  the  campaign,  recently  conducted  under  your  or- 
ders, against  the  hostile  Indians;  and  it  is  with 
great  pleasure  I  have  received  his  instructions  to  in- 
form you  that  he  appreciates  the  difficulties  you  had 
to  encounter,  and  that  he  has  been  highly  gratified 
at  the  termination  of  your  arduous  and  responsible 
duties.  Great  privations  and  embarrassments  ne- 
cessarily attend  such  a  warfare,  and  particularly  in 
the  difficult  country  occupied  by  the  enemy.  The 
arrangements  which  led  to  the  defeat  of  the  Indians 
were  adopted  with  judgment  and  pursued  with  de- 
cision, and  the  result  was  honourable  to  yourself, 
and  to  the  officers  and  men  acting  under  your  orders. 

I  will  thank  you  to  communicate  to  the  forces 
that  served  with  you,  both  regulars  and  militia,  the 
feelings  of  the  President  upon  this  occasion.  1  have 
the  honour  to  be,  very  respectfully,  your  obedient 
seryant. 

LEWIS  CASS. 

Gen.  H.  Atkinson,  Jefferson  Barraiks,  Missouri. 

Mr.  Cass,  in  the  report  referred  to  aoove,  makes 
some  remarks  on  this  war,  and  on  the  character  of 
the  Indian  nations  generally,  which  show  that  he 
had  fathomed  the  Indian  character,  and  was  quite 
au  fait  in  regard  to  it.     He  says: — 

"  The  hostilities  recently  commenced  by  the  Sauk 
and  Fox  Indians,  may  be  traced  to  causes  which 
have  been  for  some  time  in  operation,  and  which 
left  little  doubt  upon  the  minds  of  those  acquainted 
with  the  savage  character,  that  they  were  deter- 
mined to  commit  some  aggression  upon  the  frontier- 
The  confederated  tribes  of  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  have 


It 


OBNBRAL    CASS. 


93 


l)een  long  distinguished  for  their  daring  spirit  of  ad- 
venture  and  for  their  restless  and  rccKless  disposi- 
tion. At  the  commencement  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury, one  of  these  tribes  made  a  desperate  attempt 
to  seize  the  post  of  Detroit;  and  during  a  period  of 
forty  years,  subsequent  to  that  cftbrt,  they  caused 
great  trouble  and  embarrassment  to  the  French  colo- 
nial government,  which  was  only  terminated  by  a 
most  formidable  military  expedition,  sent  by  that 
enterprizing  people  into  the  remote  regions  west 
of  Green  Bay.  During  the  last  war  with  Great 
Britain^  this  confederacy  entered  zealously  into  the 
contest,  and  was  among  the  most  active  and  deter- 
mined of  our  enemies.  After  the  peace  their  com- 
munication with  the  Canadian  auth<jrities  was  pre- 
served ;  and,  in  every  year,  large  parties  of  the  most 
influential  chiefs  and  warriors  visited  Upper  Canada, 
and  returned  laden  with  presents.  Tliat  this  con- 
tinued intercourse  kept  alive  feelings  of  attaciniient 
to  a  foreign  power,  and  weakened  the  proper  and 
necessary  influence  of  the  United  Stales,  is  known 
to  every  one  who  has  marked  the  progress  of  events 
and  conduct  of  the  Indians  upon  the  north-western 
frontier.  The  tribes  upon  the  upper  Mississippi, 
particularly  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  and  Winnebagoes, 
confident  in  their  position  and  in  their  natural  cou- 
rage, and  h  ing  totally  ignorant  of  the  vast  dispro- 
portion betvs  ♦'n  their  power  and  that  of  the  United 
States,  have  always  been  discontented,  keeping  the 
frontier  in  alarm,  and  continually  committing  some 
outrage  upon  the  f>ersons  or  property  of  the  inhabit- 
ants. All  'liis  is  the  result  of  impulse,  and  is  the 
necessary  and  almost  inevitable  consequence  of  in- 
stitutions which  make  war  the  great  object  of  life. 
It  is  not  probable,  that  any  Indian  seriously  bent 
upon  hostilities,  ever  stops  to  calculate  the  force  of 
the  white  man,  and  to  estimate  the  disastrous  con- 
"equences  which  we  know  must  be  the  result.     Ho 


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04 


LIFB    OF 


is  impelled  onward  in  his  desperate  career,  by  pas- 
sions which  are  fostered  and  encouraged  by  the 
whole  frame  of  society  ;  ancf  he  is,  very  probably, 
stimulated  by  the  predictions  of  some  fanatical 
leader,  who  promises  him  glory,  victory  and  scalps. 

"  In  this  state  of  feeling,  and  with  these  incite- 
ments to  war,  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  claimed  the  right 
of  occupying  a  part  of  the  country  on  Rock  river, 
even  after  it  had  been  sold  to  citizens  of  the  United 
States,  and  settled  by  them.  In  1829  and  in  1830, 
serious  difficulties  resulted  from  their  efforts  to  es- 
tablish themselves  in  that  section,  and  frequent  col- 
lisions  were  the  consequence.  Representations  were 
made  to  them,  and  every  effort,  short  of  actual  h'>s- 
tilities,  used  by  the  prof)er  officers,  to  induce  th>..n 
to  abandon  their  unfounded  pretensions,  and  to  con- 
fine themselves  to  their  own  country  on  the  west 
side  of  the  Mississippi  river." 

Mr.  Cass  continued  to  discuss  the  circumstances 
at  length,  and  demonstrated  what  should  be  the 
policy  of  the  United  States  towards  the  aborigines 
for  the  purpose  of  protecting  the  better  disposed  por- 
tion of  the  tribe  from  their  own  disorderly  numbers. 

Mawkish  sensibility  may,  perhaps,  attack  some 
of  the  opinions  expressed  above;  but  those  who 
do  so,  have  always  avowed  their  respect  for  as- 
sertions which,  though  they  might  assail  them,  they 
can  not  controvert. 

Indian  difficulties,  during  the. administration  of 
the  war  department  by  General  Cass,  were  rife. 
Besides  the  Florida  war,  in  consequence  of  the  ex- 
tension of  the  laws  of  Georgia  over  the  Creeks  and 
Cherokees,  those  powerful  tribes  became  dissatisfied, 
and  were  on  the  eve  of  war.  General  Cass  con- 
tributed much  to  their  pacification,  and  has  had  the 
good  fortune  to  see  his  efforts  to  avert  strife  fully 
appreciated  by  both  the  white  man  and  the  Indian. 

In  1836,  Mr.  Cass  left  the  War  Department  for 


GENERAL    CASS. 


95 


France,  to  which  country  he  had  been  appointed  by 
General  Jackson,  mii^^ster.  Of  all  the  cabinet  of 
General  Jackson,  he  had  remained  longest  in  office, 
and  probably  possessed  his  confidence  to  a  degree 
unsurpassed  by  any  other  man.  Evidences  of  this 
are  numerous,  and  in  another  chapter  we  shall  have 
occasion  to  refer  to  a  remarkable  memento  of  this 
character. 


LIFE     OF 


CHAPTER  VI. 


Letter  from  General  Jackson — Diplomatic  Services — Indemnity 
— Eastern  Tour — Quintuple  Treaty. 

On  the  retirement  of  General  Cass  from  the  War 
Bureau,  he  received  from  the  President  a  letter 
which  fully  expressed  the  confidence  between  them, 
and  the  great  satisfaction  of  General  Jackson  at  the 
manner  in  which  the  new  minister  had  presided 
over  the  important  department  of  war. 

The  mission  was  an  important  one,  diplomatic  ne- 
gotiations having  been  interrupted  in  consequence 
of  the  non-payment  of  the  French  indemnity  for  spo- 
liations on  our  commerce.  Under  these  circum- 
stances, Mr.  Cass  was  ordered  by  General  Jackson 
to  proceed  to  France  and  there  ascertain  what  were 
the  feelings  of  the  French  government.  In  October 
of  that  year  he  left  New  York,  and  on  his  arrival  in 
London  he  learned  that  a  French  minister  had  been 
appointed  to  the  United  States.  He  therefore  im- 
mediately proceeded  to  Paris  and  established  him- 
self there.  Scarcely  had  he  been  presented  when 
he  commenced  his  efforts  to  procure  the  interest  on 
the  indemnity  of  the  twenty-five  millions  of  francs, 
which  strangely  enough  had  been  retained  at  the 
time  the  principal  was  paid.  In  this  he  was  suc- 
cessful, and  he  thus  had  the  satisfaction  of  terminat- 
ing the  dispute,  which  at  one  time  had  seemed  so 
perilous  to  tiie  peace  of  the  litigating  powers. 

In  the  great  metropolis  of  Europe,  General  Cass 
attracted  much  attention ;  a  new  man  from  a  region 
of  the  United  States  of  great  interest  to  France,  a 
dependency  of  which  it  had  been,  not  only  diplo- 


GENERAL     CASS. 


9t 


matists,  but  men  of  letters,  hurried  to  meet  him. 
That  position  he  maintained. 

The  interruption  of  diplomatic  intercourse  be- 
tween France  and  the  United  States  had  caused  a 
great  accumulation  of  business  in  the  offices  of  the 
American  legation,  to  the  dispatch  of  which, 
General  Cass  gave  all  the  resources  of  his  mind,  and 
in  1837  he  had  brought  about  such  a  state  of  order 
that  he  M'as  enabled  to  make  his  extensive  tour  in 
Italy  and  the  East. 

Passing  first  to  Italy,  he  visited  its  cities  and 
ruins,  whence  he  proceeded  to  Messina,  in  Sicily, 
Malta,  the  picturesque  and  classic  Greece,  the  beau- 
tiful islands  of  the  Archipelago,  Tu^ey  in  Europe, 
Egypt,  Palestine,  Syria,  and  the  shores  of  the  Eux- 
ine.  He  visited  the  spots  made  memorable  by  the 
contests  of  other  days,  the  ruined  temples  of  art,  and 
the  places  made  holy  by  the  early  history  of  Chris- 
tianity. Fresh  from  the  primeval  grandeur  of  the 
new  world,  he  saw  the  great  contrast  to  the  scenes 
among  which  he  had  been  brought  up,  and  appre- 
ciated the  lessons  taught  by  their  history.  One  who 
had  stood  upon  the  ruins  of  the  Aztec  race  which 
preceded  the  present  Indian  of  America,  would 
aptly  comment  on,  and  in  his  own  mind  profit  by 
the  teachings  of  the  seat  of  Troy,  Tyre,  Sidon,  Pal- 
myra in  the  desert,  and  Damascus. 

General  Cass  returned  to  Europe  with  improved 
health  and  vigour,  for  he  had  suffered  much  from 
his  arduous  duties  in  the  department  of  war,  and  at 
Paris.  His  ti^j-vels,  however,  had  not  been  only  on 
that  account  valuable.  He  had  during  his  tour  ac- 
quired a  perfect  knowledge  of  the  defects  and  faults 
of  the  consular  system  of  the  United  States,  and 
with  their  commercial  and  diplomatic  interest  in  that 
far-off  land.  The  result  of  this  tour  communicated 
to  the  departments  of  state  and  the  treasury,  in  many 
and  important  documents,  some  day  must  command 
attention,  and  be  the  nucleus  around  which  will  be 
9 


98 


LIFE    OF 


formed  a  new  theory  of  trade  and  intercourse  with 
the  half-civilized  and  down-trodden  nations,  he  vi- 
sited. No  American  who  visited  Paris  while  Gene- 
ral Cass  was  the  representative  of  the  United  States, 
will  fail  to  remember  the  courtesy  and  delicacy  of 
the  envoy.  His  house  was  always  open  to  Ameri- 
can citizens,  and  he  became  proverbial  for  kindness 
and  hospitality.  His  expenses  during  his  mission 
far  exceeded  his  salary,  and  could  only  have  been 
met  by  the  possession  of  an  ample  private  fortune, 
which  long  toil  and  far-seeing  prudence  had  enabled 
General  Cass  to  accumulate.  At  the  same  time, 
that  his  expenditures  were  liberal,. all  vain  ostenta- 
tion was  avoided,  and  he  was  unanimously  acknow- 
ledged as  the  w?)rthy  representative  of  a  great  and 
free  people. 

Kindly  received  by  Louis  Philippe,  who  at  that 
time  was  in  character  and  disposition  far  different 
from  what  he  became  during  the  few  years  imme- 
diately previous  to  the  destruction  of  his  throne  and 
dynasty.  General  Cass  was  admitted  almost  to  the 
fire-side  of  the  menage  of  the  king  of  the  French. 
His  observations  were  founded  on  the  most  demo- 
cratic interpretation  of  the  scenes  and  things  he 
witnessed.  It  has  become  the  fashion  since  the  depo- 
sition of  Louis  Philippe  to  decry  the  tone  and  char- 
acter of  this  work,  which  was  published  in  the 
Democratic  Review,  but  those  who  do  so  are  per- 
sons who  have  never  read  it,  and  are  ignorant 
of  its  tone  and  context.  It  will  bear  the  most 
rigid  scrutiny,  and  is  a  masterly  sketch  of  Louis 
Philippe  as  ne  was,  and  of  the  social  condition  of 
France  at  that  day.  The  title  of  this  essay, "  France, 
its  King,  Court,  and  Government,"  deserves  serious 
attention,  in  spite  of  all  that  has  occurred  since  in 
France.  Among  other  literary  papers  he  published 
in  this  country,  was  one  upon  the  French  tribunals 
of  justice,  which  contained  much  information  inter- 
esting to  an  American,  and  in  which  the  author  ex- 


GENERAL     CASS. 


99 


pressed  his  decided  condemnation  of  the  system  of 
the  English  common  law,  looking  upon  it  as  a  code 
originating  in  feudal  and  almost  semi-barbarous 
times,  and  utterly  unsuited  to  our  condition  and 
institutions.  Since  that  day,  the  majority  of  the 
intelligent  men  of  the  age,  and  all  oJT  those  who 
labour,  have  become  converts  to  this  opinion,  which 
ultimately  is  destined  to  force  reform  and  drive  to 
honest  lives  those  who  live  by  fraud  and  chicanery. 

The  interests  of  the  United  States  perhaps  never 
were  more  faithfully  attended  to  than  by  Mr.  Cass 
while  in  France.  Many  minor  difficulties  were 
satisfactorily  adjusted,  and  the  reputation  of  Ame- 
rican diplomacy  greatly  exalted.  During  this  time, 
permission  was  obtained  for  a  commission  of  young 
American  officers  of  cavalry  and  artillery  to  attend 
the  military  schools  of  France,  and  the  concession 
was  immediately  made  available.  This,  done  at 
the  instance  of  Governor  Cass,  has  been  most  im- 
portant, and  its  effects  may  be  traced  in  every  con- 
test of  the  present  Mexican  war,  where  the  tactics 
and  strategic  knowledge  of  the  American  army  has 
been  conspicuous. 

In  1841,  a  serious  matter  arose,  and  a  plan  was 
formed,  which,  had  it  not  been  frustrated  in  the 
germ,  must  have  placed  the  United  States  either  in 
the  predicament  of  base  submission  to  outrage  or 
embroiled  them  in  a  war  with  all  the  naval  powers 
of  Europe.  The  tenacity  with  which  the  British 
government  adheres  to  its  plans  has  become  a  fixed 
and  notorious  fact,  and  its  pretensions  to  the  supre- 
macy and  control  of  the  seas,  which  since  the  days 
of  Van  Tromp  had  been  the  cause  of  so  much 
bloodshed,  were  now  advanced  again  under  a  new 
form.  The  war  against  the  United  Slates  in  1812, 
which  began  for  the  defence  of  sailors'  rights,  had 
brought  into  the  field  thousands  of  men  who  never 
saw  the  ocean,  and  caused  large  armies  to  penetrate 
the  North  American  forests,  were  lost  on  its  ex- 


100 


LIFE     OF 


perience ;  and  under  the  pretence  of  putting  fin  end 
to  the  African  slave-trade,  a  treaty  was  formed,  by 
virtue  of  which  the  men-of-war  of  Great  Britain 
were  authorized  to  search  and  seize  all  other  vessels 
they  might  please  to  consider  engaged  in  this  traffic. 
The  plan  was  specious ;  its  ostensible  object  was  to 
seize  participators  in  what  the  laws  of  all  Christian 
states  had  declared  piracy,  and  to  succour  suffering 
humanity.  This  treaty  was  fortunately,  however, 
suffered  to  transpire  before  its  ratification,  though 
it  had  actually  been  signed  by  the  representatives 
of  England,  France,  Austria,  Prussia,  and  Russia^ 
The  character  of  these  governments  was  such  as  to 
induce  suspicion.  It  was  little  likely  that  Great 
Britain,  which  at  that  time  was  transporting  ne- 
groes as  apprentices  for  seven  years  to  colonies,  where 
the  average  duration  of  labourers'  lives  is  five,  which 
forcibly  enlisted  captured  Africans  in  her  military 
service,  and  oppressed  all  those  within  her  power, 
that  France,  which  had  slave-holding  colonies  and 
waged  a  war  of  extermination  in  Africa,  that  Rus- 
sia with  its  millions  of  serfs,  and  the  two  other 
powers,  in  which  freedom  had  never  existed,  were 
in  earnest  in  their  professed  regard  towards  the 
rights  of  African  nations.  Closer  inquiry  unfolded 
the  nefarious  design  to  General  Cass,  and  in  a  mas- 
terly pamphlet,  which  was  immediately  translated 
into  German  and  French,  he  held  up  the  scheme  to 
public  infamy.  This  gave  to  his  name  great  cele- 
brity, and,  eloquently  written,  his  work  commanded 
universal  attention.  In  this  treaty,  the  moving 
power  was  Great  Britain,  which  would  have  alone 
profited  by  it  directly,  and  therefore  had  offered  to 
the  other  powers  inducements  of  various  kinds  to 
secure  their  consent.  So  anxious  were  the  prime 
movers  of  this  scheme  to  array  the  strength  of 
Europe  against  the  United  States,  if  they  should 
resist,  that  in  case  of  the  ratification  of  the  treaty, 
Prussia,  which  had  not  at  that  time  a  single  armed 


GENERAL     CASS. 


101 


nng 
one 

to 
s  to 
ime 

of 


vessel,  was  to  be  transformed  by  diplomatic  jugglery 
and  the  present  of  an  armed  mrrine,  selected  from 
the  worn-out  vessels  in  the  British  or  French  sea- 
ports, into  a  naval  power. 

There  had  always  been  a  great  jealousy  in  France 
especially  of  the  English  superiority  at  sea,  and  this 
feeling  was  fully  aroused.  The  journals  and  popu- 
lace began  to  declaim  against  this  and  all  other 
schemes,  and  the  treaty  was,  in  consequence  of  the 
withdrawal  of  France,  never  ratified  by  Russia, 
Prussia,  or  Austria,  which  had  been  the  dupes  or 
tools  of  England. 

Previous  however  to  this,  General  Cass  had 
written  a  formal  protest  to  M.  Guizot  against  the 
treaty,  and  concluded  thus : 

"  As  soon  as  I  can  receive  despatches  from  the 
United  Stales,  in  answer  to  my  communications,  I 
shall  be  enabled  to  declare  to  you  either  that  my 
conduct  has  been  approved  by  the  President,  or  that 
my  mission  is  terminated." 

The  President  of  the  United  States  had  however 
approved  of  his  course,  and  a  power  greater  than 
his,  that  of  the  people,  ratified  the  conduct  of  their 
ambassador,  and  every  heart  in  the  nation  beat  high 
when  the  following  memorable  passage  was  read : 

"  But  the  subject  assumes  another  aspect,  when 
they  [the  American  people]  are  told  by  one  of  the 
parties  that  their  vessels  are  to  be  forcibly  entered 
and  examined,  in  order  to  carry  into  effect  these 
stipulations.  Certainly  the  American  government 
does  not  believe  that  the  high  powers,  contracting 
parties  to  this  treaty,  have  any  wish  to  compel  the 
United  States,  by  force,  to  adapt  their  measures  to 
its  provisions  or  to  adopt  its  stipulations.  They 
have  too  much  confidence  in  their  sense  of  justice 
to  fear  any  such  result;  and  they  will  see  with  plea- 
sure the  prompt  disavowal  made  by  yourself,  sir,  in 
the  name  of  your  country,  at  the  tribune  of  the 
Chamber  of  Deputies,  of  any  intentions  of  this  na- 
9* 


102 


LIFE     OF 


ture.  But  were  it  otherwise,  and  were  it  possible 
they  might  be  ileceivetl  in  this  confident  expectation, 
that  would  not  alter  in  one  tittle  their  course  of 
action.  Their  duty  would  be  the  same,  and  the 
same  would  be  their  determination  to  fulfil  it.  They 
would  prepare  themselves,  with  apprehension  in- 
deed, but  without  dismay — with  regret,  but  with 
firmness — for  one  of  those  desperate  struggles  which 
have  sometimes  occurred  in  the  history  of  the  world, 
but  where  a  just  cause  and  the  favour  of  providence 
have  given  strength  to  comparative  weakness  and 
enabled  it  to  bre^k  down  the  pride  of  power." 

M.  Guizot  replied  in  the  amicable  tone,  that 
France  had  no  evil  intentions  against  the  United 
States,  and,  as  stated  above,  the  treaty,  worthless 
without  the  co-operation  of  France,  failed. 

The  strongest  evidence  of  the  important  services 
rendered  by  General  Cass  in  the  frustration  of  this 
scheme,  was  the  unmitigated  abuse  heaped  on  him 
by  the  British  press:  whig,  tory,  radical  and  con- 
servative, all  forgot  their  many  points  of  difficulty 
and  difference,  to  censure  one  who  in  so  tender  a 
point  as  the  supremacy  of  the  seas,  had  injured  the 
national  susceptibility.  This  however  was  to  be 
expected,  but  it  became  a  matter  of  surprise  that  in 
•the  United  States  a  party  was  found  which  cen- 
sured the  minister  for  thus  protecting  the  national 
honour.  Able  men  were  found  in  this  clique,  and 
strange  things  were  said  and  done,  which  now  are 
forgotten,  while  the  value  of  Governor  Cass's  ser- 
vices are  distinctly  appreciated. 

The  administration  of  Mr.  Van  Buren  passed 
away,  and  when  the  difficulties  between  Great  Bri- 
tain and  the  United  States  in  relation  to  the  north- 
eastern frontier  began,  the  late  distinguished  Lord 
Ashburton  came  to  the  United  States  as  ambassador 
extraordinary.  As  an  appendix  to  the  treaty  nego- 
tiated between  him  and  Mr.  Webster,  was  a  clause 
binding  the  United  States  to  co-operate  in  striking 


OENEBAL    CASS. 


103 


down  all  their  own  efforts  to  secure  the  freedom  of 
the  seas.  What  the  inducement  to  do  this  was,  has 
never  been  explained,  nor  has  the  world  been  able  to 
understand  what  Africa  and  the  slave-trade  had  to 
do  with  the  north-eastern  boundary. 

In  a  despatch  of  Governor  Cass  to  the  State  de- 
partment, written  September  17th,  1812,  occurs  the 
following  passage: 

"  It  is  unnecessary  to  push  these  considerations 
further ;  and  in  carrying  them  thus  far,  I  have  found 
the  task  an  unpleasant  one.  Nothing  but  justice  to 
myself  could  have  induced  me  to  do  it.  I  could  not 
clearly  explffin  my  position  here  without  recapitula- 
tion. My  protest  of  13th  February,  distinctly  as- 
serted that  the  United  States  would  resist  the  pre- 
tension of  England  to  search  our  vessels.  I  avowed, 
at  the  same  time,  that  this  was  but  my  personal  de- 
claration, liable  to  be  confirmed  or  disavowed  by 
my  government.  I  now  find  a  trei^ty  has  been  con- 
cluded between  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States, 
which  provides  for  the  co-operation  of  the  latter  in 
efforts  to  abolish  the  slave-trade,  but  which  contains 
no  renunciation  by  the  former  of  the  extraordinary 
pretensions,  resulting,  as  she  said,  from  the  exigen- 
cies of  these  very  efforts;  and  which  pretension  I 
felt  it  to  be  my  duty  to  denounce  to  the  French 
government.  In  all  this,  I  presume  to  offer  no  fur- 
ther judgment  than  as  I  am  personally  affected  by 
the  course  of  the  proceedings,  and  I  feel  they  have 
placed  me  in  a  false  position,  whence  I  can  escape 
but  by  returning  home  with  the  least  possible  delay. 
I  trust,  therefore,  that  the  President  will  have  felt  no 
hesitation  in  granting  me  the  permission  which  1 
asked  for."  ^ 

He  obtained  permission  to  return,  and  in  two 
months  was  making  preparations  to  revisit  the  Uni-^ 
ted  States. 

Previous  to  the  departure  of  Mr.  Cass,  on  his 
eastern  tour,  he  became  involved  in  a  controversy 


104 


LIFE    OF 


in  relation  to  the  unfortunate  Florida  war,  produced 
by  some  reflections  General  Clinch,  then  of  the  army, 
had  made  on  Mr.  Cass,  in  his  testimony  before  the 
court  of  inquiry,  assembled  at  Frederick,  Maryland, 
In  1837,  to  investigate  the  difficulties  between  Ge- 
nerals Scott  and  Gaines.  The  following  indignant 
reply  written  at  Paris,  best  explains  itself  and  the 
conduct  of  Mr.  Cass  while  Secretary  at  War. 

"A  friend  has  sent  me  a  short  extract  from  the 
evidence,  recently  given  before  the  military  court 
at  Frederick,  by  General  Clinch,  together  with  copies 
of  some  letters  presented  by  him.  In  hj^s  testimony, 
General  Clinch  charges  me  with  neglecting  to  make 
adequate  preparations  for  the  defence  of  Florida, 
upon  his  representations,  during  the  progress  of  the 
difficulties  with  the  Seminole  Indians,  and  for  some 
time  after  the  commencement  of  hostilities. 

"  The  failure  of  a  campaign  is  an  old  subject  for 
crimination  and  Fecrimiaation.  In  all  ages  and  na- 
tions it  has  been  fertile  in  disputes,  sometimes  con- 
fined to  the  officers  themselves,  and  sometimes  ex- 
tending to  the  administration  of  the  government. 
Knowing  that  while  in  the  department  of  war,  I 
anxiously  endeavoured  to  fulfil  the  duty  which  the 
troubles  with  the  Seminoles  imposed  upon  the  go- 
vernment, and  satisfied,  on  as  dispassionate  a  review 
as  a  person  can  be  expected  to  take  in  a  matter 
which  so  nearly  concerns  him,  that  that  duty  was 
faithfully  performed,  I  am  not  willing  to  be  subject 
to  the  imputation  which  General  Clinch  has  so 
cavalierly  cast  upon  me.  If  the  course  of  events  in 
Florida,  whether  attributable  lO  imbecility,  to  mis- 
fortune, or  to  circumstances  beyond  control,  may 
seem  to  the  military  commanders  to  require  a  pro- 
pitiatory sacrifice,  I  shall  most  assuredly  not  sub- 
mit to  receive  upon  my  head  their  maledictions 
without  an  appeal  to  the  justice  of  my  countrymen. 
That  appeal  I  am  now  led  to  make;  but,  in  the  per- 
formance of  this  task,  it  is  not  my  object  to  assail^ 


GENERAL     CASS. 


105 


sail 


any  one.  I  carry  on  no  Carthaginian  warfare,  and 
sliali  confine  myself  to  repelling  a  serious  imputa- 
tion laid  upon  me.  I  beg  that  it  may  be  recollected 
ti^at  I  um  far  from  home,  and  that  I  am  destitute  of 
many  documents  esseniial  to  a  full  investigation  of 
the  statement  of  General  Clinch,  i  have  no  papers 
upon  the  subject  excepting  those  already  alluded  to 
— the  two  pamphlets  of  documents  published  by 
order  of  congress  in  the  session  of  1835  and  1836, 
and  for  which  I  am  indebted  to  the  same  friend,  and 
the  defence  of  General  Scott,  published  in  the  Na- 
tional Intelligencer.  For  all  else,  I  must  rely  upon 
my  memory ;  but  I  trust  I  shall  commit  no  import- 
ant error.  I  am  sure  I  shall  commit  no  intentional 
one. 

"  An  examination  of  the  general  course  of  opera- 
tions in  Florida  does  not  come  within  the  scope  of 
inquiry  which  I  propose  to  myself.  It  is  enough, 
upon  this  point,  to  say  that  each  of  the  command- 
ing generals  serving  in  t"hat  country  after  the  com- 
mencement of  hostilities,  had  carte  blanche  as  to 
men,  and  means,  and  plans.  Their  measures  were 
left  to  their  own  discretion  ;  and  they  were  author- 
ized to  call  from  the  neighbouring  states  such  force 
as  they  might  judge  adequate  to  the  attainment  of 
the  objects  committed  to  them;  and  the  various 
military  departments  were  directed  to  provide  and 
furnish  all  the  supplies  demanded.  It  follows,  of 
course,  that  the  government  was  not  responsible  for 
results.  They  did  what  every  wise  government 
should  do  in  such  a  juncture.  They  sanctioned  the 
full  employment  of  all  the  means  judged  necessary 
by  those  upon  whom  was  to  devolve  the  conduct  of 
the  war.  The  main  reliance  was  necessarily  upon 
the  militia.  The  small  amount  of  our  regular  army, 
its  dispersed  condition,  and  the  numerous  points  it 
is  called  upon  to  maintain,  rendered  it  impracticable 
to  carry  on  operations  by  its  means  ulone;  and, 
added  to  these  considerations,  there  were,  during  a 


106 


LIFE    OF 


part  of  the  Seminole  campaign,  strong  reasons, 
which  al!  will  appreciate,  having  reference  to  our 
foreign  relations,  which  rendered  it  inexpedient  to 
withdraw  all  the  troops  from  the  Atlantic  and  the 
south-western  frontiers. 

"  After  the  incipient  measures,  the  actual  and  only 
responsibility  of  the  government  was  in  the  selec- 
tion of  the  officers  to  command.  Upon  this  point 
I  have  nothing  to  say.  I  would  not  utter  a  word 
of  reproach  against  any  of  the  gallant  men  who 
have  served  in  Florida.  I  would  not,  if  I  could, 
tarnish  a  single  laurel  gathered  in  other  and  happier 
fields.  The  difficulties  they  had  to  encounter  were 
great,  and  in  some  points  unexpected.  And  I  be- 
lieve that  the  general  conduct  of  our  officer?  and 
soldiers,  during  this  trying  warfare,  was  worthy  of 
the  best  period  in  our  military  annals.  Of  the  mili- 
tary service  and  claims  of  General  Scott,  few  have 
a  higher  estimate  than  I  have,  and  no  person  has 
heard  me  utter  a  sentiment  of  disrespect  towards 
him.  Nor  shall  I  reproach  myself  for  any  part 
which  I  took  in  his  selection  for  the  command.  Suc- 
cess is  not  always  a  true  test  of  merit,  nor  the  want 
of  it  of  incapacity.  When  General  Scott  took  the 
command  the  season  of  operations  was  short.  Every 
thing  was  to  collect,  to  combine,  to  organize.  I  saw 
his  difficulties  then,  and  I  can  still  better  appreciate 
them  now. 

"  I  may  be  permitted  to  say,  however,  that  his  plan 
of  operations  did  not  seem  to  me  well  adapted  to 
the  nature  of  the  country  and  the  habits  of  the  ene- 
my ;  and  this  fact  is  known  to  some  of  the  persons 
officially  connected  with  me  in  the  war  department. 
The  opinion  of  the  president  upon  this  subject  was 
still  stronger;  und  is,  of  course,  entitled  to  much 
more  weight  than  mine.  I  recollect  perfectly  his 
views,  when  the  letter  of  General  Scott,  disclosing 
his  plan,  was  read  to  him.  But  any  change  by  the 
authority  of  the  government,  would  have  been  a 


SENBRAL     CASS. 


107 


hazardous  experiment.  General  Scott  was  upon 
the  spot,  with  the  best  means  of  information,  and 
with  all  the  intelligence  and  experience  necessary 
to  devise  and  to  execute.  To  have  overruled  him 
would  have  been  to  assume  a  most  fearful  responsi- 
bility, and  to  direct  the  details  of  a  campaign  in  an 
Indian  country  at  the  distance  of  a  thousand  miles. 

"  I  observe  in  General  Scott's  defence  a  quota- 
tion from  the  testimony  of  Captain  Thruston,  a 
most  intelligent  officer,  by  which  it  appears  that 
the  first  impression  upon  his  mind  was  unfavourable 
to  the  contemplated  plan,  but  that  subsequent  expe- 
rience had  corrected  this  opinion.  Not  having  had 
the  advantage  enjoyed  by  Captain  Thruston,  of  a 
personal  knowledge  of  the  course  of  operations  in 
Florida,  it  will  not,  I  trust,  be  imputed  to  any  un- 
just prejudice,  that  I  participated  in  the  opinion  of 
an  officer  who  is  held  in  high  esteem  by  General 
Scott,  and  that  I  retained  that  opinion,  not  having 
seen  any  sufficient  reason  for  changing  it.  I  did 
not  see  how  a  combined  operation  against  such  an 
enemy  as  the  Indians,  here  to-day  and  gone  to-mor- 
row, and  whose  presence  is  seldom  known  but  by 
their  assault^,  could  be  carried  on  simultaneously 
from  three  points  so  distant  as  Volusia,  Fort  Drane 
and  Tampa  Bay,  with  any  reasonable  hope  of  a  co- 
operation, which  would  bring  the  enemy  to  action, 
and  at  the  same  time  prevent  his  escape.  I  did  not 
think  that  when  these  masses  were  brought  to  a 
point  —  when  the  net  was  drawn  —  that  the  game 
would  be  caught.  I  am  free,  however,  to  confess 
that  I  have  now  doubts  whether  any  other  plan 
would  have  succeeded  better  i*t  that  time,  and  with- 
in the  short  space  remaining  for  the  service  of  the 
militia,  and  for  the  season  of  operations ;  and  as 
neither  of  tke  columns  was  attacked,  no  positive 
injury  resulted  from  the  division.  The  enemy  was 
sought  and  could  not  be  found. 

"  But  to  the  main  point  pf  this  appeal.     General 


108 


LIFE    OF 


Clinch  was  asked  by  the  court,  *  What  in  your 
opinion  prevented  the  subjection  of  the  Seminole 
Indians  in  the  campaign  conducted  by  General  Scott, 
in  Florida,  in  1836?' 

'  "  To  this  General  Clinch  answers  in  substance, 
that  it  was  owing  to  the  neglect  of  the  head  of  the 
war  department  m  not  having  made  more  adequate 
preparations  in  1835,  and  early  in  1836.  In  other 
words,  because  there"  were  not  troops  enough  in 
Florida  to  prevent  the  Indians  from  commencing 
hostilities,  therefore  the  campaign  to  reduce  them 
was  unsuccessful.  T  leave  to  the  court  itself  and 
to  General  Clinch  the  task  of  reconciling  this  an- 
swer with  the  question  itself,  and  the  objects  of  the 
inquiry.  The  caused  of  the  Indian  hostilities,  or 
the  measures  taken  by  the  government  to  prevent 
them  previously  to  the  assumption  of  the  command 
by  General  Scott,  were  not  subjects  before  the 
court.  They  were  questions  of  public  policy,  pro- 
perly cognizable  by  congress  alone,  and  which  had 
more  than  once  engaged  the  attention  of  that  body. 
But  between  them  and  the  nature  of  the  military 
operations  there  was  no  just  connection;  and  whe- 
ther there  were  in  the  country,  before  the  war,  ten 
men  or  ten  thousand,  was  a  question  having  no  re- 
lation to  the  duties  of  the  court  or  the  conduct  of 
General  Scott. 

>  "But  General  Clinch  goes  still  further;  quite  far 
enough  indeed  to  disclose  that  his  feelings  were  so 
much  excited,  as  to  weaken  very  much  his  per- 
ceptions of  what  he  owed  to  the  court,  to  himself, 
and  to  me.  He  says,  *  when  at  last  the  honourable 
secretary  awoke  from  his  dreams  of  political  pre« 
ferment,  and  turned  his  attention,'  &c.  And  this 
General  Clinch  says,  as  a  witness,  under  the  sanc- 
tion of  an  oath.  He  undertakes  to  dive  into  the 
recesses  of  the  human  heart,  not  as  a  matter  of  spe- 
culation, but  of  assertion ;  and  to  pronounce  on  the 
witness'  stand,  not  only  that  I  neglected  my  duty, 


GENERAL    CASS. 


109 


the 
spe- 
the 


but  upon  the  motives  which  influenced  me.  Whe- 
ther in  the  alleged  neglect,  or  in  the  motives  as- 
signed, he  is  right,  I  shall  leave  to  our  common 
country  to  decide.  I  may  be  allowed,  however,  to 
say,  that  I  trust  this  paper  will  be  read  by  some,  and 
by  some  who  enjoy  the  confidence  of  their  country, 
who  will  exonerate  me  from  the  charge  of  over- 
weening ambition.  I  am  sure  General  Clinch,  in 
his  cooler  moments,  will  be  satisfied  that  he  has 
done  me  wrong.  I  do  not  know  him  personally, 
but  those  who  do,  speak  of  him  as  a  man  of  high 
honour  I  saw  in  a  newspaper,  a  short  time  since, 
an  account  of  a  dinner  given,  I  think,  to  General 
Clinch  in  Florida.  An  address  made  by  him  upon 
that  occasion,  discloses  undoubtedly  the  wrongs 
which  he  supposes  he'has  received  at  my  hands,  and 
the  feelings  which  this  sentiment  has  inspired.  He 
attributed  to  me  his  being  superseded  in  command, 
and  to  the  president  the  return  of  his  commission, 
which  he  had  tendered,  accompanied  with  the  hope 
he  would  continue  in  service.  He  evidently  sup- 
posed that  I  had  purposely  injured  him,  and  that  the 
mark  of  favour  he  received  was  without  my  par- 
ticipation, or  against  my  consent.  I  owe  to  General 
Clinch  no  explanation.  A  morbid  sensibility,  or  some 
other  motive  not  more  worthy  of  tolerance,  has  led 
him  to  mistake  his  own  claims  and  situation,  and  to 
become  the  vehicle  of  unjust  imputations.  But  as 
this  subject  has  excited  much  discussion,  and  con- 
nects itself  with  the  purpose  of  this  statement,  I 
think  it  right  to  allude  briefly  to  the  causes  which 
led  to  the  change  of  command. 

"  Two  reasons  produced.this  measure.  The  occur- 
rences in  Florida  in  the  month  of  December,  1835, 
information  of  which  reached  Washington  in  Janu- 
ary, 18^6,  led  to  the  conviction,  that  measures  upon 
a  more  enlarged  scale  had  become  necessary,  and 
at  the  same  time  reports  were  received,  indicating 
that  the  Creeks  had  manifested  a  determination  to 


110 


LIFE     OF 


join  the  Seminoles  in  hostilities.  As  two  series  of 
operations,  under  different  officers,  against  enemies 
near  enough  to  co-operate,  and  with  the  same  ha- 
bits, feelings,  and  objects,  were  to  be  avoided,  if 
practicable,  and  as  the  amount  of  force  to  be  called 
into  service  might  be  such  as  to  justify  the  states 
furnishing  troops,  in  sending  into  the  field  major- 
generals  with  their  requisitions,  it  was  obviously- 
necessary  to  vest  the  principal  command  in  an  offi- 
cer of  the  highest  rank  in  our  service.  It  was  very 
desirable  to  have  an  officer  of  established  character 
and  experience,  particularly  in  a  duty  involving 
such  a  heavy  responsibility  in  its  expenditures;  and 
not  to  leave  the  command  to  fluctuate,  as  genera! 
officers  of  the  militia  might  be  called  into  or  retire 
from  service.  General  Clinch  was  a  brevet  briga- 
dier-general, and  thierefore  liable  to  be  superseded 
by  a  major-general  of  the  militia. .    n.  i  * 

**  But  there  was  a  still  stronger  reason  for  this  mea- 
sure. It  will  be  recollected  that  the  disaster  which 
befel  Major  Dade,  and  the  exposed  condition  of  Flo- 
rida, painfulI}'^  excited  the  public  mind,  particular- 
ly in  the  southern  states.  Spontaneous  movements 
were  made  in  that  quarter  for  raising  troops,  and 
the  patriotism  of  the  country  called  into  service 
many  corps,  before  the  state  of  affairs  could  be 
known  at  Washington.  The  government  was  re- 
quired by  public  opinion,  as  well  as  by  the  higher 
obligation  of  duty,  to  take  the  most  immediate  and 
efficient  measures  for  the  suppression  of  hostilities. 
General  Clinch  was  isolated  in  the  heart  of  Florida. 
In  fact,  his  true  position  was  necessarily  unknown, 
for  events  were  every  moment  changing,  and  the 
aspect  of  affairs  becoming  worse.  His  communica- 
tions might  at  any  moment  have  been  intercepted, 
himself  remain  ignorant  of  the  measures'  of  the  go- 
vernment, and  they  of  his  situation  and  designs. 
General  Scott  was  in  Washington.  No  time  would 
be  lost  in  giving  him  the  necessary  instructions,  and 


OENenAL    OASS. 


Ill 


his  route  would  lead  him  through  South  Carolina 
and  Georgia,  whence  most  of  the  force  had  to  be 
drawn.    While  a  despatch  was  travelling  to  General 
Clinch,  General  Scott  could  be  in  the  southern  coun- 
try, organizing  his  force  and  plans.     And  besides, 
such  a  despatch  might  have  failed  or  been  inter- 
cepted, and  then  in  what  condition  would  the  coun- 
try have  been?  and  to  what  just  censure  would  the 
government  have  been  exposed  ?    And  even  should 
the  necessary  authority  reach  General  Clinch,  much 
time  must  be  lost  in  returning  upon  the  route  with 
his  communications.     He  could  not  leave  his  com- 
mand :  affairs  were  too  critical.  And  it  must  be  ob- 
vious, that  the  arrangements  for  such  a  campaign  as 
was  contemplated,  could  not  be  made  without  the 
presence  and  personal  co-operation  of  the  officer 
destined  to  command.     The  remedy  for  all  this  was 
obvious.     And  was  the  government  to  be  deterred 
from   adopting  it,   because  General   Clinch  might 
choose  to  consider  it  a  reflection  upon  him  ?     There 
werq  much   higher  considerations  involved  in  this 
aflair  than  General  Clinch  seems  to  appreciate.    He 
never  had  the  slightest  reason  to  consider  himself 
injured.     A  just  sensitiveness  is  an  honourable  feel- 
ing in  a  military  man ;  but  if  carried  too  far  it  de- 
generates into  mortified  vanity.     All  governments 
have  at  all  times  assumed  and  exercised  the  right  of 
changing  their  commanding  officers  at  pleasure ;  and 
especially  so  when  the  sphere  of  operations  is  en- 
larged, -.-w.,,    „  ,  ,o:>^in  mil  u'i,tU 

"I  trust  I  have  said  enough  to  show  that  this 
measure  was  not  intended  to  cast,  nor  did  it  cast, 
the  r'*'Thtest  reflection  upon  General  Clinch.  As  to 
the  selection  of  a  successor,  with  every  just  allow- 
ance for  General  Clinch,  it  may  be  safely  said  that 
he  had  won  his  way  to  this  command  by  high  and 
honourable  services. 

"  With  respect  to  the  return  of  General  Clinch's 
commission,  I  have  only  to  say,  that  I  proposed  the 


■"11 
IK 


112 


LIFE    Of 


measure  to  the  president,  by  whom  it  was  cordially 
approved ;  as  was  also  the  assignment  of  General 
Scott  to  the  command. 

**  I  see  that  General  Scott,  in  his  defence,  appreci- 
ates the  excited  feelings  of  General  Clinch,  and  finds 
it  necessary  to  discredit  one  of  the  answers  of  the 
latter,  and  to  trace  his  erroneous  judgment  to  the 
species  of  hallucination  under  which  he  appears  to 
labour.  It  seems  that  General  Clinch  has  been  asked 
whether  the  operations  of  General  Gaines  had  in- 
terfered with  the  projects  and  arrangements  of  Gene- 
ral Scott.  The  answer  of  General  Clinch  was  in 
the  negative,  and  the  solution  of  this  answer  by 
General  Scott  is  given  in  the  following  remark,  in 
the  defence  of  the  latter ;  *'  Under  this  ruling  idea, 
the  witness.  General  Clinch,  could  see  nothing  but 
the  imputed  errors  of  the  war  department."  Indeed ! 
and  is  this  the  judgment  of  General  Scott,  upon  the 
state  of  mind  of  the  principal  witness  who  appears 
to  arraign  the  proceedings  of  the  executive  ?  I  need 
not  add  to  this  rebuke :  far  more  severe  than  any 
thing  J  have  said,  or  desire  to  say. 

''General  Scott  likewise  adds  his  conviction  that 
*  the  repeated  calls  and  wise  admonitions'  of  General 
Clinch  were  neglected.  This  point  I  shall  examine 
by  and  by ;  and  if  it  is  not  shown  that  the  precautions 
taken  to  prevent  the  commission  of  hostilities  by  the 
Seminoles  were  greater  than  have  ever  been  adopted, 
when  the  strength  of  the  enemy  is  taken  into  view, 
since  the  discovery  of  the  continent,  I  will  confess 
that  I  have  read  our  history  to  little  purpose. 

"One  act  of  voluntary  justice  General  Scott  has 
done  to  the  war  department;  and  I  appreciate  it  the 
more,  as  it  stands  out  in  solitary  relief.  He  says,  *  I 
do  not  mean  to  intimate,  Mr.  President,  that  any 
time  was  lost  by  the  war  department  in  putting  me 
in  motion,  after  the  news  of  Clinch's  affair  of  Decem- 
ber 31,  which  preceded  at  Washington  the  account 
of  Major  Dade's  melancholy  fate  on  the  28th.*  And 


GENERAL    CA8g. 


113 


yet  the  concession  is  not  much  to  make.  The 
slightest  attention  to  the  dates,  as  recorded  in  the 
adjutant-general's  report  of  February  9,  1836,  pub- 
lished by  order  of  congress,  will  show  that  the  ac- 
tion of  the  department  was  not  less  prompt  upon 
that  occasion  than  upon  all  others. 

"  Unofficial  information  of  General  Clinch's  action 
reached  Washington  on  the  17th  of  January ;  and 
on  the  same  day  a  plan  of  operations  was  devised, 
and  the  necessary  instructions  given  toGeneral  Eustis 
for  its  execution,  to  provide,  as  far  as  seemed  ne- 
cessary, for  the  vigorous  prosecution  of  the  war* 
The  measures  will  be  stated  in  the  sequel.  But 
three  days  later,  to  wit:  on  the  20th,  reports  were 
received  that  the  Creeks  ineditated  hostilities;  and 
it  was  therefore  deemed  necessary,  as  already  stat- 
ed, to  enlarge  the  sphere  of  operations,  and  to  call 
General  Scott  to  the  command ;  and  this  was  done, 
and  detailed  instructions  prepared  and  delivered  to 
General  Scott  on  the  next  day.  So  much  for  the 
general's  willingness  to  spare  any  intimation  of  an 
unnecessary  delay  upon  this  occasion.  If  it  were 
necessary  to  allude  to  the  matter  at  all,  would  it  not 
have  been  more  just,  more  noble,  more  in  consonance, 
I  may  add,  with  the  character  of  General  Scott,  for 
him  to  have  said,  plainly  and  explicitly,  that  never 
were  more  prompt  or  decisive  measures  taken  than 
uf>on  that  occasion — measures,  whose  discussion  and 
consideration,  as  General  Scott  must  well  remember, 
extended  far  into  the  night,  and  broke  upon  his'  rest, 
as  well  as  upon  mine  ? 

"  Rumours  of  Indian  disturbances  are  matters  of 
frequent  occurrence.  Sometimes  these  have  been 
followed  by  hostilitifs,  but  more  frequently  they 
have  proved  unfounded.  It  is  obviously  impractica- 
ble to  keep  a  superior  force  to  the  Indians  upon  every 
point  of  our  extended  and  exposed  frontier ;  and 
were  troops  collected  upon  every  rumour,  the  coun- 
try would  be  subjected  to  enormous  expense,  and 
10* 


114  .  ^  %     L 1  F  B    O  P     .,  ?* 

the  army  and  militia  to  perpetual  fatigue.  It  is  thd 
duty  of  the  government  then,  to  act  prudently,  as 
well  as  promptly,  upon  these  occasioub ;  and  while 
efficient  measures  are  adopted  where  they  appear 
necessary,  to  withhold  them  where  they  do  not,  and 
to  preserve  in  these  measures  a  just  proportion  to 
the  strength  of  the  Indians,  and  the  probability  of 
their  hostile  designs. 

.  "What  was  the  amount  of  the  white  population 
of  Florida  in  1835,  I  have  not  the  means  of  ascer- 
taining. I  suppose,  however,  that  it  exceeded 
30,000.  It  is  necessary  to  keep  this  fact  in  view 
while  looking  at  the  course  of  events;  because. each 
part  of  our  frontier  must  be  expected  to  supply  a 
considerable  proportion  of  the  force  at  any  time  re- 
quired to  repel  sudden  aggression  of  the  Indians 
If  I  have  made  a  reasonable  approximation  towards 
the  population  of  Florida,  it  will  be  found  that  no 
one  has  ever  estimated  the  whole  number  of  the  Se- 
mkioles  at  more  than  one-sixth  of  this  population, 
and  that  the  official  reports  in  the  archives  of  the 
department  reduced  them  to  one-tenth.  There  was 
then  near  the  theatre  of  difficulties  a  permanent 
force,  ready  to  aid  the  efforts  of  the  army,  and 
amply  sufficient,  agreeably  to  all  preceding  experi- 
ence, to  restrain  or  subdue  the  Indians.  Let  me 
ask  the  frontier  inhabitants  of  the  west,  from  one 
end  of  the  great  valley  of  the  Mississippi  to  the 
other — those  who  are  now  in  contact  with  the  In- 
diani?,  and  those  who  have  purchased  security,  by 
years  of  wars  and  sufferings — whether  they  do  not 
think  the  government  would  at  all  times  have  dis- 
charged its  duties  towards  them,  by  making  arrange- 
ments for  more  than  one  regulir  soldier  for  each  war- 
rior within  strikingdistance,and  among  a  white  popu-* 
lation  outnumbering  the  Indians  at  least  six  to  one, 
and  probably  ten  to  one  ?  and  yet  this  was  done  in 
Florida.  Our  settlements  would  never  have  crossed 
the  Alleghany,  if  our  forefathers  had  found  it  neces- 


OBNBRAL    CASS. 


115 


one 
the 
In- 
by 
not 
dis- 
■nge- 


sary  to  prosecute  Indian  wars  upon  a  larger  scale 
than  this. 

**  A  treaty  had  been  formed  with  the  Seminole  In- 
dians, providing  for  their  removal  west  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi ;  and  from  the.  time  which  had  elapsed,  and 
the  reluctance  manifested  by  the  Indians  to  remove, 
it  had  become  necessary  to  take  measures  for  carry- 
ing the  treaty  into  effect.  But  all  the  difficulties 
anticipated  with  this  tribe,  were  expected  to  result 
from  the  contemplated  movement ;  and  no  one  look- 
ed to  hostile  demonstrations  on  the  part  of  the  In- 
dians, until  and  unless  they  wcire  required  to  emi- 
grate. I  doubt  whether  there  was  scarcely  a  per- 
son in  Florida  who  was  prepared  to  hear  of  any 
hostile  movement  by  these  Indians,  before  the  ar- 
rival of  the  period  fixed  for  their  departure.  Governor 
Caton  distinctly  stated  in  a  letter  to  me,  that  their 
hostilities  were  entirely  unexpected  at  that  time  by 
the  people  of  Florida ;  and  he  informed  me  that  the 
same  sentiment  had  been  communicated  to  the  de- 
partment by  the  secretary  of  the  territory.  The 
whole  correspondence  of  General  Clinch,  until  a 
very  short  period  preceding  the  commencement  of 
actual  hostilities,  indicates  the  sume  opinion.  I 
mention  the  circumstance  to  show  that  the  govern- 
ment had  a  right  to  suppose  that  General  Clinch  had 
ample  time  to  collect  all  his  force,  and  to  anticipate 
the  Indians,  should  he  become  satisfied  of  their  hos- 
tile designs.       7>iir. 

"  An  important  element  in  this  inquiry  is  the 
junount  of  the  Seminole  population.  Captain  Thrus- 
ton,  I  observe,  estimates  them  in  his  testimony  at 
5,000,  and  I  have  never  heard  a  higher  estimate  put 
upon  their  numbers.  Lieutenant  Harris,  a  very  in- 
telligent officer,  charged  with  the  duty  of  providing 
and  distributing  the  articles  stipulated  by  the  treaty 
to  be  given  to  the  Indians,  and  well  acquainted  with 
them,  estimated  them  in  a  report  to  the  war  de- 
partment as  not  exceeding  3,0()0,  including  negroes. 


116 


e»    LIFB  Of     ^  » 


of  which  1,600  were  females.  This  was  the  latest 
report  upon  the  subject,  and  derived  value  from  the 
fact,  that  as  certain  articles  were  to  be  distributed 
to  each  Seminole,  and  as  Lieutenant  Harris  had  this 
duty  to  perform,  it  was  obviously  proper  for  him  to 
use  his  best  exertions  to  ascertain  the  full  number, 
in  order  to  avoid  all  complaints  at  the  distribution, 
as  it  was  obviously  the  policy  of  these  Indians  not 
to  diminish  in  their  report  their  actual  number. 

"  General  Thompson,  the  Indian  agent,  a  most  re- 
spectable citizen  and  valuable  officer,  known  to  many 
ns  a  representative  in  congress  from  Qeorgia,  in  a 
letter  to  the  commissary-general  of  subsistence,  of 
August  29,  1835,  says :  *  1  have  resorted  to  all  prac- 
ticable means  of  information  to  ascertain,  with  a 
probable  approach  to  precision,  the  actual  number 
of  the  Seminole  people,  and  I  am  induced  to  believe 
it  very  little  exceeds  3,000.' 

»  "  General  Scott,  in  one  of  his  reports,  after  his 
campaign,  stated  that  there  had  never  been  500 
Indian  warriors  collected  together  at  one  time,  in 
Florida.  J  quote  from  memory,  but  I  cannot  be 
deceived  in  the  fact.  The  President  supposed  their 
whole  force  did  not  exceed  500.  Previous  circum- 
stances had  given  to  him  very  favourable  opportuni- 
ties of  forming  a  correct  opinion  on  this  subject. 
It  will  also  be  recollected,  that  no  one  expected  the 
whole  of  the  Indian  fprce  would  be  opposed  to  us. 
A  considerable  party  was  desirous  of  emigrating; 
and  it  has  often,  perhaps  I  may  say  almost  always, 
happened,  in  our  later  Indian  wars,  that,  on  the  oc- 
currence of  hostilities  with  any  of  the  tribes  within 
our  borders,  a  division  of  the  tribe  has  taken  place, 
and  the  seceding  party  has  either  remained  neutral 
or  joined  us ;  and  in  the  case  of  the  Seminoles,  a 
band,  I  think,  of  about  500,  left  their  people  at  the 
commencement  of  hostilities,  and  placed  themselves 
within  our  lines. 

**  In  the  report,  already  alluded  to,  of  the  adjutant- 


OENBIIAL    OA88. 


117 


general,  is  embodied  a  report  from  the  commissioner 
of  Indian  affairs  upon  this  subject ;  in  which  he 
states,  that  assuming  the  estimate  of  Lieutenant 
Harris  as  correct,  and  supposing  the  Seminolcs 
equally  divided  on  the  question  of  emigration,  there 
would  be  700  Seminole  males,  children  and  adults, 
forming  the  hostile  party.  He  supposes  that  not 
more  than  one-half  ot  this,  to  wit,  350  persons,  were 
fit  to  bear  arms ;  but  he  adds,  that  this  hostile  party 
may  have  received  accessions  fr6m  the  other  party, 
and  also  from  the  Creeks.  I  believe  it  has  been  found 
that  few,  if  any,  of  the  Creeks  joined  the  Scminoles. 

*'  Under  all  these  circumstances,  I  thought  then, 
and  I  yet  think,  that  the  estimate  of  500  hostile 
warriors  was  sufficiently  high.  I  do  not  answer 
for  the  accuracy  of  this  information.  I  am  only 
answerable  for  the  use  which  was  made  of  it.  It 
formed  the  only  basis  upon  which  the  government 
could  act.  I  may  add,  what  is  known  to  all,  any 
way  conversant  with  the  Indians,  that  their  num- 
bers are  generally  overrated  rather  than  underrated  ; 
and  that  in  almost  all  the  actions  we  have  fought 
with  them,  subsequent  information  has  reduced  the 
estimate  of  the  numbers  originally  given  upon  vague 
calculation. 

"  It  will  be  observed  that  there  were  two  periods 
in  the  progress  of  the  Seminole  difficulties  anterior 
to  the  commencement  of  actual  hostilities :  one  be- 
tween the  origin  of  these  difficulties,  and  the  pacifi- 
cation, if  I  may  so  term  it,  made  by  General  Clinch, 
General  Thompson,  and  Lieutenant  Harris,  with 
these  Indians,  in  April  1835,  when  a  mutual  and 
apparently  satisfactory  arrangement  was  made  with 
them,  by  which  they  agree  to  remove  during  the 
succeeding  winter,  and  the  government  agreed  that 
they  might  remain  till  then.  The  second  period  in- 
tervened between  this  time  and  the  breaking  out  of 
the  war. 

**  It  is  necessary  to  keep  in  view  the  change  of 


118 


f  tt 


LIFB    OF 


1  J 


circumstances  induced  by  this  arrangement,  though 
General  Clinch  has  overlooked  it  in  his  evidence» 
as  he  refers,  in  proof  of  the  charge  he  makes  of  the 
negligence  of  the  government,  to  his  letter  of  Ja- 
nuary, 1835,  in  which  he  asked  for  six  additional 
companies.  Now,  the  state  of  things  existing  when 
this  application  was  made,  and  subsequent  to  the 
above-mentioned  arrangement,  was  totally  different, 
and  General  Clinch  is  wrong  to  refer  to  it  as  any 
step  in  the  series  of  measures  having  relation  to 
actual  hostilities.  The  force  in  Florida  in  the  spring 
of  1835,  was  found,  by  experience,  to  be  enough. 
It  accomplished  its  object,  and  led  to  a  mutual  ar- 
rangement. A  person  looking  at  the  presentation 
of  this  letter,  with  the  others  by  General  Clinch, 
would  suppose  that  it  constituted  one  of  a  series 
of  demands  made  by  him,  and  rejected  by  the  go- 
vernment. He  would  never  dream  that  it  had  a 
relation  to  a  state  of  things  which  was  terminated 
peacefully  and  successfully;  and  after  which  the 
force  under  General  Clincn  was,  for  some  months, 
judged  sufficient  by  him  for  the  protection  of  the 
country.  While  General  Clinch  supposed  the  In- 
dians altogether  unfavourable  to  a  removal,  he  esti- 
mated the  necessary  force  to  control  them  at  twelve 
companies ;  but  when  they  had  consented  to  go  vo- 
luntarily, he  considered  a  less  force  necessary,  as  I 
shall  show  conclusively  by  his  letters  and  proceed- 
ings. 

"  In  November,  1834,  on  the  receipt  of  the  first 
authentic  intelligence  that  difficulties  might  pos- 
sibly occur  with  the  Seminoles,  General  Clinch,  an 
officer  of  experience  and  of  much  reputation,  was 
directed  to  assume  the  command  in  Florida,  and  the 
necessary  instructions  were  given  him  for  his  go- 
vernment. 

"  In  January,  1835,  General  Clinch  asked  for  six 
additional  companies  to  strengthen  his  command, 
with  a  view  to  the  removal  of  the  Seminole  Jndians 


OBNBR AL     CASS. 


119 


*  in  the  spring,'  say  in  April  or  May  of  that  year. 
His  demand  was  submitted  to  the  President,  who 
decided  that  four  companies  should  be  sent  to  Flo- 
rida from  Fort  Monroe,  and  that  General  (Minch 
should  be  authorised  to  order  the  company  at  Key 
West  to  join  him  whenever  he  mia;ht  think  proper. 
Orders  for  these  purposes  were  given  on  the  14th 
of  February,  1835.  I  will  not  enter  into  a  consi- 
deration of  the  views  which  operated  to  place  five, 
instead  of  six,  companies  at  the  disposal  of  General 
Clinch.  It  may  have  been  error  of  judgment ;  bui 
most  assuredly  neglect,  as  intimated  by  himself,  ana 
repeated  by  General  Scott,  had  no  part  in  the  mat- 
ter. When  the  estimated  force  ot  the  Indians  is 
taken  into  view,  the  just  desire  of  circumscribing 
the  expense  as  far  as  prudent,  and  the  material  fact 
that,  by  the  treaty,  only  about  one-third  of  the  Se- 
minoles  could  be  required  to  remove  that  '  spring,' 
(say  short  of  two  hundred  disaffected  warriors), 
the  decision  of  the  president  will  be  thought  a  dis- 
creet one.  But  there  is  a  still  better  authority,  if 
possible,  upon  this  occasion,  in  justification  of  the 
measures  adopted  by  the  government.  It  is  the 
authority  of  General  Clinch  himself.  He  asked,  as 
the  maximum  of  force  which  could  be  wanted,  eleven 
companies,  or  five  hundred  and  fifty  men.  He  re- 
ceived nine  companies,  or  four  hundred  and  fifty 
men ;  and  he  received,  also,  power  to  order  the  com- 
pany from  Key  West  to  join  him,  which  would  make 
ten  companies,  or  five  hundred  men.  I  state  what 
I  suppose  to  be  about  the  average  of  the  companies. 
Whether  more  or  less  is  not  important  for  my  pre- 
sent purpose,  which  is  to  repel  the  accusation  of 
having  neglected  General  Clinch's  requisitions. 
These  requisitions  were  for  companies. 

"  Well,  then,  the  force  sent  to  General  Clinch  car- 
ried him  through  the  sprint.  He  made  an  arrange- 
ment with  the  Indians,  which  appeared  to  be  satis- 
factory to  them,  and  was  so  to  the  government,  and 


120 


LIFE    OF      :i  ^^ 


which  quieted  the  frontier,  and  induced  the  general 
belief  that  this  troublesome  matter  was  over.  His 
force  was  found  sufficient,  because  his  purpose  was 
etiected. 

*'  But  General  Clinch  himself  considered  a  less 
force  than  that  he  named,  and  even  a  less  force 
than  that  placed  at  his  disposal  by  the  government, 
adequate  to  the  objects  he  had  to  attain.  He  did  not 
call  to  his  aid  the  company  from  Key  West ;  and  it  is 
very  important  in  this  inquiry  to  remark,  that  while 
General  Clinch  now  accuses  the  government  of  ne- 
glecting his  application  for  a  proper  force,  during  that 
whole  season  the  company  at  Key  West,  placed  un- 
der his  command  the  preceding  February,  almost  in 
sight  of  Florida,  and  not  more  than  one  day's  sail 
from  its  shore,  was  left  by  him  upon  that  island,  and 
never  reached  the  sphere  of  his  command  till  the  21st 
of  December.  The  order  authorising  General  Clinch 
to  call  it  to  his  aid,  must  have  reached  him  the  be- 
ginning, of  March.  During  nine  months,  then,  de- 
ducting the  few  days  necessary  to  communicpte  his 
orders  to  Major  Dade,  and  for  that  officer  to  cross 
over  to  the  main  land  of  Florida,  General  Clinch 
considered  his  force  sufficient,  or  he  was  guilty  of 
that  neglect  which  he  now  charges,  and,  as  I  trust  I 
have  shown,  vainly  charges,  to  the  government. 

"  And  what  stronger  proof  can  be  given  of  the  as- 
sertion already  made,  that  the  hostile  movement  of 
the  Indians  was  unexpected  by  him,  who,  of  ali 
others,  was  charged  vvith  watching  and  restraining 
th'^m,  than  this  failure  to  employ,  for  that  purpose, 
all  the  force  placed  at  his  disposal? 

"  But  still  further:  General  Clinch,  in  his  letter  to 
the  war  department,  of  April  1,  1835,  after  stating 
his  belief  that  an  arrangement  would  be  made  which 
would  quiet  the  Indians,  and  bo  satisfactory  to  the 
government,  says  that,  *  should  the  chiefs  come  to 
the  conclusion  to  remove  quietly,  it  would  be  still 
necessary  to  keep  the  present  force  in  Florida.*  The 


GENERAL     CASS. 


121 


as- 


chiefs  did  consent  to  remove  quietly,  as  has  been 
already  shown,  and  the  then  *  present  force'  was 
kept  in  Florida;  and  nothing  more  did  General 
Clinch  then  demand.  In  all  tnis  is  there  any  evi- 
dence of  neglect  ?  I  leave  the  question  to  the  great 
tribunal  of  public  opinion. 

"So  passed  the  first  period  of  the  Seminole  diffi- 
culties. I  will  merely  add,  upon  this  branch  of  the 
subject,  that  General  Thompson,  in  a  letter  of  June 
3,  1835,  some  time  after  the  conclusion  of  the  ar- 
rangement, reported  that  Powell  had  assented  to  it, 
and  that  he  had  '  no  doubt  of  his  sincerity,  and  as 
little  that  the  principal  difficulty  is  surmounted.' 

"  Thus  matters  remained  till  the  full,  without  any 
intimation  from  General  Clinch  that  an  additional 
force  would  be  necessary.  The  first  suggestion  of 
this  nature  was  made  on  the  12th  of  October,  by 
Lieutenant  Harris,  I  think,  in  a  personal  interview 
at  the  war  department.  But  as  General  Clinch  had 
not  asked  for  the  increase,  it  was  not  judged  proper 
positively  to  direct  it.  But  he  was  authorised  to 
call  for  two  more  companies;  one  from  Pensacola 
and  one  from  Mobile,  if  he  thought  them  necessary ; 
and  orders  were  issued  to  the  commanding  officers 
of  those  companies  to  hold  themselves  in  readiness 
for  an  immediate  movement. 

"  On  the  21st  of  October,  a  letter  was  received 
from  General  Clinch,  dated  on  the  9th  of  that  month, 
•  in  which  he  suggested  the  propriety  of  being  au- 
thorised to  call  into  service  150  mounted  volunteers, 
to  aid  in  the  removal  of  the  Indians,  and  to  suppress 
any  difficulties  which  might  occur.'  (See  the  report 
of  the  adjutant-general  of  February  9,  183G.)  This 
report  thus  states  the  result : 

"  •  But  as  this  force  was  required  to  aid  in  the  re- 
moval, and  to  prevent  difficulties  which  were  anti- 
cipated, and  not  to  repel  hostilities  which  had  com- 
menced, or  which  were  then  impending.  General 
Clinch  Was  informed  in  answer,  on  the  22d  of  Octo- 
11 


123 


LIFE     OF 


ber,  that  there  was  no  appropriation  authorising  the 
measure,  and  that  the  President,  under  existing  cir- 
cumstances, did  not  consider  that  the  case  came 
under  the  constitutional  power  to  call  into  service 
additional  force  for  the  defence  of  the  country.' 

"  This  was  the  view  of  the  President  respecting 
his  own  powers.  I  am  neither  responsible  for  it,  nor 
called  upon  to  defend  it.  I  imagine,  however,  that 
every  dispassionate  man  who  looks  at  the  facts  as 
they  were  then  known  at  the  seat  of  government, 
and  at  the  constitutional  powers  of  the  President, 
will  fully  approve  his  decision. 

"  The  report  of  the  adjutant-general  continues : 

"  *  But  he,  (Gen.  Clinch,)  was  authorised  to  order 
two  more  companies,  viz. :  those  at  forts  Wood  and 
Pike  to  join,  which,  with  the  two  companies  placed 
at  his  disposal  on  the  15th  of  October,  made  four 
companies  of  regular  troops,  in  lieu  of  the  mounted 
men.  On  the  30th  of  the  same  month,  orders  were 
given  by  the  navy  department  to  Commodore  Dallas, 
to  direct  one  of  the  vessels  of  the  squadron  to  co- 
operate with  General  Clinch  in  his  endeavour  to 
effect  the  removal  of  the  Seminoles. 

"*In  a  letter  received  on  the  31st  of  October, 
General  Clinch  requested  that  three  companies  of 
regular  troops  might  be  added  to  his  command.  He 
was  apprised,  however,  by  previous  orders,  that  four 
had  already  been  placed  at  his  disposal.' 

«  General  Clinch  has  complained  that  these  troops 
ought  to  have  been  sent  from  the  north,  rather  than 
from  the  points  whence  they  were  ordered.  This 
was  a  question  for  the  proper  military  officers  of 
the  department  at  Washington  to  decide,  having  re- 
ference to  the  wants  of  the  service  and  Ihe  position 
-of  the  troops.  The  subject  was  referred  to  them, 
and  the  selection  was  made  of  the  companies  enu- 
merated. One  leading  reason  is  obvious.  There 
:was  still  ground  to  hope  that  coercive  measures 
inight  not  be  necessary.     It  was,  therefore,  thought 


GENERAL    CABS. 


123 


better  to  place  these  additional  troops  under  the  or- 
ders of  General  Clinch,  at  the  nearest  points  to  Flo- 
rida, where  they  could  remain,  if  not  wanted,  or 
whence  he  could  speedily  draw  them,  when  neces- 
sary, than  to  order  them  positively  into  the  country 
from  a  great  distance.  As  to  the  delay  in  their  ar- 
rival, I  neither  know  any  thing  of  the  cause  nor  feel 
the  slightest  responsibility.  There  was  a  fault  or  a 
misfortune  somewhere,  not  in  giving  the  necessary 
directions,  but  in  their  subsequent  execution.  It  is 
not  necessary,  for  my  purpose,  to  inquire  where  it 
was.  Most  assuredly,  had  proper  diligence  been 
used,  the  companies  from  Pensacola,  Mobile,  Lake 
Ponchartrain,  and  Key  West,  could  have  reached 
Tampa  Bay,  before  the  periods  of  their  actual  ar- 
rival, as  shown  in  the  report  of  the  adjutant-general, 
to  wit,  the  27th  of  November,  and  the  12th,  25th, 
28th,  and  31st  of  December.  And  it  appears  con- 
clusively that  this  delay  did  not  originate  in  the  want 
of  time;  for  the  Key  West  company,  which  might 
have  been  called  into  Florida  nine  months  before,  did 
not  reach  there  till  the  21st  of  December,  nearly  a 
month  after  the  Pensacola  company,  which  was  only 
placed  at  Generul  Clinch's  disposal  on  the  15th  of 
October. 

"  The  last  measures  directed  by  the  government, 
before  the  commencement  of  actual  hostilities,  are 
stated  in  the  same  report. 

**  *  In  his  communication  from  St.  Augustine,  dated 
the  29th  of  November,  received  on  the  9th  of  De- 
cember, General  Clinch  reported  that,  should  he  find 
it  necessary  for  the  protection  of  the  frontier  settle- 
ments, he  would  assume  the  responsibility  of  calling 
out  at  least  100  mounted  men,  believing  that  the 
measure  would  be  sanctioned  by  the  President  and 
Secretary  of  War.  This  approbation  was  commu- 
nicated to  him  on  the  same  day;  and,  in  addition  to 
it,  a  letter  was  addressed  to  the  governor  of  Florida, 
requesting  him  to  place  at  the  disposal  of  General 


124 


LIFE    OF 


Clinch  any  militia  force  which  that  officer  miglit  re- 
quire. Of  this,  General  Clinch  was  infornnea.  He 
was  also  informed  that,  at  the  request  of  General 
Hernandez,  orders  would  be  given,  through  the  ord- 
nance department,  to  issue  500  muskets,  and  the 
necessary  accoutrements^  to  the  militia.' 

"  Here  terminated  all  the  demands  of  General 
Clinch  for  troops,  prior  to  the  commencement  of  hos- 
tilities; with  this  exception,  however,  that,  on  the 
9th  of  December,  he  suggested  the  expediency  of 
substituting  four  companies  from  the  north  instead 
of  the  four  ordered  from  the  south,  as  the  latter  might 
not  reach  the  country.  But,  at  the  moment  when  the 
letter  was  written, one  of  these  companies  had  already 
been  two  weeks  at  Tampa  Bay,  and  all  of  them  were 
there  before  the  letter  reached  the  war  department. 
So  that  the  suggestion  was  evidently  impracticable. 

"  Now  let  us  slightly  review  this  matter.  I  pass 
over  the  first  period  in  order  not  to  encumber  the 
subject,  and  because  an  arrangement  was  made 
which  for  some  time  seemed  to  promise  permanent 
tranquillity. 

"  General  Clinch  had  eight  companies  with  him, 
and  one  more  within  his  reach ;  and  these,  as  has 
been  shown,  he  deemed  sufficient.  His  next  demand 
was  for  three  more  companies,  and  this  was  suc- 
ceeded and  met  by  giving  him  four.  He  asked  for 
150  mounted  men,  but  the  President  did  not  feel  au- 
thorised, in  the  then  state  of  affairs,  to  call  for  them. 
He  then  subsequently  stated  he  should  ask  the  go- 
vernor of  Florida  for  100  men,  if  he  should  find  it 
necessary  for  the  protection  of  the  frontiers.  The 
President,  believing  that  circumstances  were  then 
sufficiently  menacing  to  justify  this  measure,  gave 
his  sanction  to  it ;  and,  in  addition,  without  any  de- 
mand from  General  Clinch,  he  placed  the  whole  mi- 
litia of  the  territory,  through  the  governor,  at  his 
disposal. 

"  Now,  as  a  matter  of  fact>  General  Clinch  had  a 


GENERAL     CASS. 


125 


far  greater  force  under  his  command  than  he  ever 
required.  I  do  not  mean  that  he  had  collected  them 
together ;  with  that  I  have  no  concern.  I  have  only 
to  show  that  proper  measures  for  that  purpose  were 
taken  by  the  war  department.  And  1  have  shown 
that  these  measures  ought  to  have  given  to  General 
Clinch  the  full  complement  of  regular  troops  he 
askf^d  for.  In  addition  to  which  he  embodied  500 
militia;  and  that  force  was  with  him,  as  stated  by 
the  adjutant-general,  at  the  battle  of  the  Wythla- 
coochee,  on  the  31st  of  December,  1835.  Why  it 
was  not  in  the  engagement  has  never  been  satisfac- 
torily explained.  I  believe  General  Clinch's  personal 
conduct  on  that  day  was  beyond  all  reproach,  and 
never  was  the  honour  of  the  American  arms  more 
nobly  supported,  than  by  the  regular  troops.  But 
this  most  favourable  opportunity  of  terminating  the 
war,  by  striking  a  decisive  stroke,  was  lost.  The 
combat  was  sustained  by  about  200  regular  troops, 
aided,  it  is  said,  by  twenty-five  or  thirty  militia* 
And  why  was  not  the  whole  force  in  action  ?  A 
narrow  stream  like  the  Wythlacoochee  ought  not  to 
have  prevented  American  riflemen  from  crossing 
upon  logs — upon  rafts — by  swimming  their  horses — 
to  take  part  in  the  struggle,  unequally  but  gallantly 
maintained  by  their  countrymen  within  full  sight. 
More  especially  as  there  could  be  no  danger  from 
the  enemy  in  crossing,  the  regular  troops  covering 
the  banks  of  the  river.  If  I  recollect  correctly,  the 
regulars  crossed  early,  and  it  was  some  time  after 
they  had  effected  their  passage  before  the  action 
commenced ;  the  duration  of  the  action  I  have  not 
the  means  of  ascertaining.  The  enemy  was  repulsed 
by  200  men.  Who  can  doubt  but  that  there  was 
force  enough,  had  it  been  properly  directed  and  em- 
ployed, to  terminate  the  war  at  once '?  If  these  500 
spectators  had  been  brought  into  action,  and  the 
enemy'  broken  and  pursued  by  the   horsemen,  the 


126 


LIFE     OF 


victory  might  have  been  as  decisive  as  any  of  those 
gained  under  happier  auspices  in  the  same  section 
of  the  union.  If  these  troops  were  prevented  by  in- 
surmountable obstacles  from  participating  in  the 
contest.  General  Clinch  owed  to  them  a  full  develop- 
ment of  the  circumstances.  If  they  were  prevented 
by  any  less  justifiable  cause,  General  Clinch  owed  to 
him&df,  to  the  regular  tnrops,  to  justice,  and  to  his 
country,  a  plain  and  unequivocal  disclosure  of  the 
truth,  bear  where  it  might. 

"  So  much  for  the  year  1835.  But  General  Clinch 
extends  his  charge  against  the  war  department  to  the 
year  1836,  and  continues  his  accusation  of  neglect, 
asserting  that  a  competent  force  and  competent  sup- 
plies were  not  provided  'early'  in  that  year. 

"  I  suppose  it  will  be  conceded  that  the  8th  of 
January  may  be  fairly  said  to  be  *  early'  in  1836. 
Well,  then,  on  the  8th  of  January,  authority  was 
given  to  General  Clinch  to  call  for  any  amount  of 
force  he  might  require,  from  the  states  of  South 
Carolina,  Georgia,  and  Alabama ;  and  this  measure 
was  taken  upon  the  responsibility  of  the  department, 
and  without  any  application  from  that  officer,  and 
the  necessary  requests  were  transmitted  to  the  ex- 
ecutives of  these  states.  And  on  the  10th  and  13th 
of  the  same  month,  upon  the  suggestion  of  the  war 
department,  orders  were  given  for  the  employment 
of  three  revenue  cutters,  and  for  the  co-operation 
of  Commodore  Dallas's  squadron. 

"I  suppose  the  17th  of  January  was  *  early'  in 
the  year  1836.  Well,  then,  upon  the  17th  of  Janu- 
ary, fearing,  from  the  intelligence,  which  every  day 
became  worse,  that  the  communication  with  Gene- 
ral Clinch  might  be  intercepted,  and  he  thus  pre- 
vented from  executing  the  orders  of  the  govern- 
ment. General  Eustis,  then  at  Charleston,  was 
directed  to  proceed  to  Florida,  and  to  take  all  ne- 
cessary measures  to  keep  open  the  communication 


QEJtEtLAL    CASS. 


127 


with  General  Clinch,  and  to  report  to  him  for  fur- 
ther instructions.  General  Eustis  was  directed  to 
take  with  him  the  garrisons  at  Charleston  and  Sa- 
vannah, and  such  a  portion  of  the  South  Carolina 
militia  as  he  might  deem  necessary.  And  the  go- 
vernor of  that  state  was  requested  to  supply  him 
with  the  force. 

**  I  suppose  again,  that  the  21st  of  January,  1836» 
was  'early*  in  that  year.  Well,  then,  on  the  pre- 
vious day,  the  first  intimation  reached  the  depart- 
ment of  the  unquiet  disposition  of  the  Creeks,  and 
of  the  probability  of  their  joining  the  Seminoles. 
It  instantly  became  apparent  that  much  more  ex- 
tensive operations  might  become  necessary  than 
had  been  contemplated.  It  was  immediately  de- 
termined to  adapt  the  measures  to  be  taken  to  this 
new  state  of  things,  and  General  Scott,  with  ample 
powers,  was,  on  the  21st,  ordered  to  take  the  com- 
mand in  that  quarter.  It  is  enough  to  repeat,  that 
he  had  unlimited  means  placed  at  his  diposal. 
-  "  I  confine  myself  to  the  measures  taken  for  the 
employment  of  the  proper  force.  This  is  all  for 
which  I  feel  the  slightest  responsibility.  When  a 
force  is  directed  to  any  point,  the  proper  military 
bureaus  of  the  war  department  make  arrangements 
with  or  without  the  conjunction  of  the  officer  com- 
manding, for  all  the  materiel  which  can  be  required. 
And  that  officer  has,  besides,  the  right  to  make  his 
requisitions,  and,  if  necessary,  to  make  purchases 
for  every  thing  he  needs.  These  are  details  into 
which  no  head  of  the  war  department  can  have  time 
to  enter,  and  it  is  precisely  for  their  execution  that 
the  military  bureaus  are  instituted.  The  adjutant- 
general  states  in  the  report  before  mentioned:  *I 
have  not  considered  it  necessary  to  detail  in  this  re- 
port the  orders  given  by  the  various  military  bureaus 
of  the  war  department,  to  provide  the  necessary 
means    such  as  transportation,  ordnance  and  ord- 


128 


LIFE    OF 


nance  stores,  and  provisions  for  the  operations  in 
Florida.  All  the  measures  in  relation  to  these  sub- 
jects, which  appeared  to  be  necessary,  were  daily 
taken/ 

"  I  do  not  recollect  ever  to  have  heard  it  inti- 
mated that  General  Clinch's  operations  were  crip- 
pled for  the  want  of  any  supplies  for  the  force 
placed  at  his  disposal  by  the  government.  Cer- 
tainly, if  such  had  been  the  case,  he  ought  to  have 
represented  it,  that  the  proper  inquiries  might  have 
been  instituted,  and  an  adequate  remedy  applied. 
Without  the  adjutant-general's  report,  it  might  have 
been  taken  for  granted,  from  the  absence  of  all 
complaint  by  General  Clinch,  that  there  was  no 
failure  in  the  measures  of  the  military  bureaus  at 
Washington  to  proportion  his  supplies  to  his  force; 
but  the  report  of  that  faithful  and  accurate  officer 
sets  the  subject  at  rest. 

"  I  feel  I  violate  no  confidence  in  saying,  that 
there  was  not  a  report  received  of  the  operations  in 
Florida,  from  the  Hrst  apprehension  of  difficulties, 
which  was  not  submitted  to  the  President ;  nor  a 
measure  of  any  importance  taken,  which  was  not 
approved  by  him.  It  is  well  known,  that  from  the 
practice  and  organization  of  our  government,  the 
heads  of  departments  are  in  daily  communica- 
tion with  the  President,  and  that  all  questions  of 
much  interest  are  discussed  with  him;  and  to  those 
who  know  the  habits  of  rigid  scrutiny  which  Gene- 
ral Jackson  carried  with  him  into  public  life,  I  need 
not  say,  that  no  question  could  be  presented  to  him 
which  he  did  not  carefully  and  fully  consider.  In 
the  examination  of  papers,  he  was  remarkable  for 
the  most  patient  attention ;  and  I  will  say  for  him 
now,  in  his  day  of  retirement,  what  I  would  not 
have  thus  publicly  said  of  him  in  the  day  of  his 
power,  that  never  have  I  known  a  man  who  brought 
to  every  subject  quicker  power  of  perception,  nor  a 
more  intuitive  sagacity. 


0£NERAI«    CASS. 


129 


"  I  do  not  resort  to  this  authority  to  shield  my- 
self from  responsibility  under  the  constitutional  pre- 
rogative of  the  president.  I  feel  and  acknowledge 
my  own  responsibility  to  the  fullest  extent,  and  am 

Crepared  to  meet  it.  The  measures  directed  by  me 
ecame  my  measures,  whether  approved  or  not  by 
the  president;  but  I  confess,  that  the  opinion  of 
Andrew  Jackson  upon  these  subjects  is  interesting 
to  me.  I  need  not  advert  to  the  reasons  which  give 
peculiar  value  to  his  views  concerning  the  opera- 
tions in  Florida ;  to  his  intimate  knowledge  of  the 
country  and  of  the  Indians,  acquired  during  years 
of  service  there,  in  a  military  and  civil  capacity ; 
and  to  those  personal  claims  to  consideration,  which 
will  be  as  undying  as  the  history  of  our  country. 

"  With  these  reflections  and  statements,  I  leave 
the  charge  of  General  Clinch  to  the  judgment  of  the 
American  people.  If  they  think  that  the  incapacity, 
or  misfortunes,  or  dissensionsof  military  commanders 
are  to  be  visited  upon  my  head,  I  have  only  to  sub- 
mit, with  as  much  resignation  as  may  be.  But  I 
hope  better  things  from  the  impartiality  of  my  coun- 
trymen. I  have  received,  during  a  public  life  of 
more  than  thirty  years,  many  favours  I  neither  ex- 
pected nor  merited.  I  am  encouraged  to  hope  that 
when  I  ask  only  rigid  justice.  I  shall  not  be  found  a 
vain  suppliant. 

«  LEWIS  CASS. 


•*  Parii,  March  6, 1837." 


>  i 


To  this  letter  General  Clinch  replied,  and  the 
whole  Florida  campaigns  were  again  fought  on 
paper,  and  enough  was  elicited  to  prove  satisfac- 
torily the  prudence  of  the  secretary.  When  the 
Florida  war  was  ultimately  terminated  by  General 
Worth,  it  was  by  operations  in  accordance  with  the 
suegestions  of  Mr.  Cass. 

This  is  the  place  to  refer  to  a  very  remarkable  let- 
ter of  General  Jaekson  to  Mr»  Cass,  in. which,  though 


130 


LIFB     OF 


vvritten  some  months  after,  he  refers  to  the  circum- 
stances described  above,  and  shows  how  high  an  es- 
timate was  placed  upon  Mr.  Cass's  labours  by  the 
venerable  ex-president. 

Hermitage,  July,  1843. 

My  dear  Sir  : — I  have  the  pleasure  to  acknow- 
ledge your  very  friendly  letter  of  the  25th  of  May 
last.  It  reached  me  in  due  course  of  mail ;  but  such 
were  my  debility  and  afflictions,  that  I  have  been 
prevented  from  replying  to  it  until  now ;  and  even 
now  it  is  with  great  difficulty  that  I  write.  In  re- 
turn for  your  kind  expressions  with  regard  to  my- 
self, I  have  to  remark,  that  I  shall  ever  recollect,  my 
dear  general,  with  great  satisfaction,  the  relations, 
both  private  and  official,  which  subsisted  between 
us,  during  the  greater  part  of  my  administration. 
Having  full  conndence  in  your  abilities  and  repub- 
lican principles, I  invited  you  to  my  cabinet;  and  I 
can  never  forget  with  what  discretion  and  talents 
you  met  those  great  and  delicate  questions  which 
were  brought  before  you  whilst  you  presided  over 
the  department  of  war,  which  entitled  you  to  my 
thanks,  and  will  be  ever  recollected  with  the  most 
lively  feelings  of  friendship  by  me. 

But  what  has  endeared  you  to  every  true  Ame- 
rican, was  the  noble  stand  which  you  took,  as  our 
minister  at  Paris,  against  the  quintuple  treaty,  and 
which,  by  your  talents,  energy,  and  fearless  respon- 
sibility, defeated  its  ratification  by  France — a  treaty 
intended  by  Great  Britain  to  change  our  interna- 
tional laws,  make  her  mistress  of  the  seas,  and. de- 
stroy the  national  independence,  not  only  of  our 
country,  but  of  all  Europe,  and  enable  her  to  be- 
come the  tyrant  on  every  ocean.  Had  Great  Britain 
obtained  the  sanction  of  France  to  this  treaty,  {with 
the  late  disgraceful  treaty  of  Washington — so  dis- 
reputable to  our  national  character  and  injurious  to 
our  national  safety,)  then,  indeed,  we  might  have 


GEN  BRA  L    CASS. 


131 


hung  our  harps  upon  the  willows,  and  resigned  our 
national  indepenaence  to  Great  Britain.  Hut,  1  re- 
peat, to  your  talents,  energy,  and  fearless  responsi- 
oility,  we  aire  indebted  for  the  shield  thrown  over 
us  from  the  impending  danser  which  the  ratification 
of  the  quintuple  treaty  by  France  would  have 
brought  upon  us.  For  this  act,  the  thanks  of  every 
true  American,  and  the  applause  of  every  true  re- 
publican, are  yours ;  and  for  this  noble  act  I  tender 
you  my  thanks. 

I  admired  the  course  of  Dr.  Linn  in  the  Senate, 
in  urging  his  Oregon  bill ;  and  I  hope  his  energy  will 
carry  it  into  a  law  at  the  next  session  of  Congress. 
This  will  speak  to  England  a  language  which  she 
will  understand — that  we  imll  not  submit  to  be  nego- 
tiated  out  of  our  territorial  rights  hereafter. 

Receive  assurances  of  my  friendship  and  esteem. 

ANDREW  JACKSON. 

To  the  Hon.  Lewis  Cass. 

Than  this,  no  compliment  can  be  more  distinct 
and  emphatic,  or  more  valuable. 


eaty 
ma- 
de- 
our 
be- 
tain 
with 
dis- 
s  to 
liave 


132 


LI  FB    OF 


i'.*    / 


,•  V 


CHAPTER  VII. 


Mr.  Cass  in  the  United  States — Visit  to  General  Jackson — Let- 
ters— Course  in  the  Senate — Nomination  by  the  Baltimore 
Convention — Correspondence,  &c. 

In  December  1842,  General  Cass  returned  to  the 
United  States,  and  it  may  safely  be  said,  he  was 
received  with  the  warmest  tokens  of  admiration  and 
respect,  by  citizens  of  every  phase  of  political  opi- 
nion. The  stand  he  had  occupied  in  regard  to  the 
quintuple  treaty  evoked  tiie  popular  enthusiasm, 
and  everywhere  he  was  looked  upon  as  the  cham- 
pion of  a  free  ocean.  On  his  arrival  at  New  York 
he  was  catechized  in  relation  to  his  political  opi- 
nions. To  these  questions  he  replied  briefly  and 
succinctly,  and  avowed  his  unshaken  attachment 
to  the  great  principles  of  the  Democratic  party.  No 
one  could  with  more  propriety  do  so,  for  he  had, 
during  a  longer  period,  perhaps,  than  any  other  mem- 
ber of  General  Jackson's  cabinet,  except  Mr.  Van 
Buren,  been  linked  with  him  in  social  and  political 
intercourse.  On  his  route  to  the  west  he  was  every 
where  met  with  popular  demonstrations,  and  at  Har- 
risburg  and  Columbus,  respectively,  was  met  by  the 
governors  of  the  respective  states,  who  escorted  him 
m  pomp  and  pride  to  the  capitals.  His  greatest  tri- 
umph, however,  was  at  Detroit,  the  city  which  he 
had  conducted  from  almost  infancy,  to  prosperity 
and  success.  The  governor,  the  municipal  author- 
ities, and  the  people,  came  to  meet  him  and  welcome 
him  home.  On  the  8th  of  January,  the  anniversary 
of  the  most  brilliant  victory  achieved  in  the  United 
States  since  the  revolution,  a  committee  of  the  Demo- 


GENERAL    CASS. 


133 


cratic  Convention  of  Indiana,  inldressed  him  in  re- 
lation to  political  artliirs.  To  these  gentlemen  he 
made  a  full  exposition  of  his  ideas,  declaring  his 
opposition  to  a  natir>nal  bank,  unfolding  the  pecu- 
liar  character  and  the  injurious  tendency  of  such 
an  institution.  Iln  expressed  himself  as  an  enemy 
to  the  plan  of  distributing  the  proceeds  of  the  public 
lands  among  the  states,  and  the  scheme  of  a  protec- 
tive taritr,  declaring  "  that  the  revenue  should  be 
kept  at  the  lowest  points  conipatible  with  the  per- 
formance of  constitutional  functions."  The  question 
of  the  propriety  of  the  veto  was  then  a  subject  of 
great  discussion,  and  Mr.  Cass  expressed  himself  as 
decidedly  opposed  to  any  alteration  of  the  constitu- 
tion :  he  also  declared  that  he  would  not  be  a  can- 
didate for  the  Presidency,  unless  nominated  by  a 
full  convention  of  the  Democratic  party. 

On  the  4th  of  July,  1843,  General  Cass  delivered 
an  oration  at  Fort  Wayne,  Ind.,  on  the  completion 
of  the  great  canal  connecting  the  lakes  with  the 
Ohio,  through  the  Wabash  River.  In  this  oration 
he  thus  eloquently  contrasted  the  prospects  and 
future  history  of  the  United  States,  with  those 
of  the  many  foreign  lands  through  which  he  had 
travelled : 

"  I  have  stood  upon  the  plain  of  Marathon,  the 
battle-field  of  liberty.  It  is  silent  and  desolate. 
Neither  Greek  nor  Persian  is  there  to  give  life  and 
animation  to  the  scene.  It  is  bounded  by  sterile 
hills  on  one  side,  and  lashed  by  the  eternal  waves  of 
t'le  Ecean  sea  on  the  other.  But  Greek  and  Persian 
were  once  there,  and  that  decayed  spot  was  alive 
with  hostile  armies,  who  fought  the  geat  fight  which 
rescued  Greece  from  the  yoke  of  Persia.  And  I 
have  stood  upon  the  hill  of  Zion,  the  city  of  Jerusa- 
lem, the  scene  of  our  Redeemer's  sufferiiigs,  and 
cj'ucifixion  and  ascension.  But  the  sceptre  has  de- 
parted from  Judah,  and  its  glory  from  the  capital  of 
Solomon.  The  Assyrian,  the  Egyptian,  the  Greek, 
13 


134 


LIFE    OF 


the  Roman,  the  Arab,  the  Turk,  and  the  Crusaders, 
hnvo  passed  over  this  chief  place  of  Israel  ;.iid  have 
bereft  it  of  its  power  and  beauty.  In  those  regions 
of  the  East  where  society  passed  its  infancy,  it 
seems  to  have  reached  decrepitude.  If  the  associa- 
tions whicli  the  memory  of  their  past  ^lory  excites, 
arc  powerful,  they  are  melancholy.  They  are  with- 
out gratification  for  the  present,  and  without  hope 
for  the  future.  But  here  we  are  in  the  freshness  of 
youth,  and  can  look  forward  with  rational  confidence 
to  ages  of  progress  in  all  that  gives  power  and 
pride  to  man,  and  dignity  to  human  nature.  It  is 
better  to  look  forward  to  prosperity  than  back  to 
glory." 

During  the  summer  of  1843,  General  Cass  received 
the  letter  from  General  Jackson  which  has  already 
been  referred  to  and  printed.  During  that  year, 
General  Cass  remained  at  his  home  attending  to  his 
business,  which,  from  many  years'  absence,  required 
his  particular  care;  but  in  the  spring  of  1844,  in 
answer  to  many  questions,  he  wrote  a  letter  on  the 
subject  of  Texas,  in  which  he  avowed  himself  plainly 
and  distinctly  in  favour  of  the  annexation  to  the 
CJnited  States  of  the  sister  republic.  In  May  of 
that  year,  the  regular  democratic  convention  at 
Baltimore  met,  and,  on  the  first  ballot,  Mr.  Cass 
received  eighty-three  votes,  which  gradually  in- 
creased, until,  on  the  seventh,  one  hundred  and 
twenty-three  were  cast  for  him.  There  is  now  very 
little  doubt,  but  that  on  another  vote  he  would  have 
lu;en  selected  as  the  candidate.  The  convention, 
however,  adjourned,  and  all  parties  yielding  to  the 
principle  of  expediency,  selected  the  present  incum- 
bent, who,  after  two  ballotings,  was  declared  to 
have  been  selected  by  the  convention  as  the  candi- 
date of  the  democratic  party. 

An  ordinary  man  so  nearly  on  the  point  of  suq,- 
cess,  would  have  felt  mortified  and  wounded.  So 
did  not,  however,  General  Cass,  who,  on  the  very 


GENERAL    CASS. 


135 


1  the 
ainly 
)  the 
ly  of 
at 
Cass 
in- 
and 


sue- 
So 


day  o^'  the  reception  of  the  news  of  tlic  nomination 
at  Detroit,  in  an  eloquent  address  at  a  popular  as- 
sembly, gave  his  warmest  assent  to  the  nomination, 
and  avowed  his  intention  to  support  it,  and  do  all 
in  his  power  to  secure  its  success.  He  consequently 
accepted  the  invitation  of  llie  great  convention  at 
Nashville,  Tennessee,  in  August  of  that  year,  and, 
by  that  immense  body,  he  was  received  with  the 
most  lavish  respect.  His  address  to  that  conven- 
tion has  been  spoken  of  as  a  masterpiece  of  elo- 
quence and  statesmanf>hip,  worthy  of  him  who  had 
foiled,  in  the  quintuple  negotiation,  by  honest  talent 
and  nerve,  the  efforts  of  the  combined  diplomatic 
chicanery  of  Europe.  The  applause  by  which  it 
was  welcomed,  and  the  unanimous'  assent  to  its 
teachings,  was  the  best  proof  of  its  merit. 

From  Nashville,  General  Cass  proceeded  to  the 
residence  of  Gpneral  Jackson,  with  whom  he  passed 
much  time.  He  may  almost  be  said  to  have  received 
the  last  political  adieu  and  teachings  of  the  veteran 
who  had  defeated  the  Indian  and  Ei  Itish  enemies  of 
the  nation,  and  been  recognized  as  the  restorer  of 
the  great  and  true  principles  of  the  theory  of  the 
government  of  the  country. 

General  Cass,  on  his  return,  made  a  tour  through 
Ohio,  Indiana,  and  Michigan,  and  everywhere  was 
most  enthusiastically  received.  Everywhere  he  was 
acknowledged  as  the  fosterer  of  the  civilization  of 
the  west,  and  representative  of  its  dignity  and 
greatness.  His  tour  has  thus  eloquently  been  de- 
scribt'd — 

"  But  a  great  change  had  been  effected  since  first 
he  came  among  them.  The  lofty  forests  which  he 
then  traversed  were  now  fruitful  fields;  the  lonely 
cabins  which  he  protected  from  the  firebrand  of  the 
savage  were  transformed  into  populous  cities;  the 
Indian  war-path  was  converted  into  the  railroad; 
the  harbors  upon  the  lakes  and  rivers  which  he  first 
Burveved  were  now  the  seats  of  commerce  aud  of 


136 


LIFE    OF 


wealth ;  and  th*^  scattered  population  which  he 
governed  were  now  a  great  people.  The  crowds 
which  attended  his  progress  through  those  States 
seemed  rather  the  triumphal  procession  of  a  con- 
queror, than  the  peaceful  attendants  of  a  private 
citizen." 

The  election  of  1844  is  now  a  matter  of  history. 
The  majority  of  every  western  state  except  one, 
and  that  was  Kentucky,  the  home  of  the  great  an- 
tagonist of  the  democratic  party,  was  given  for  Mr. 
Polk.  Even  Kentucky  had  but  a  small  majority  in 
favour  of  the  whig  candidate.  No  small  degree  of 
this  success  is  to  be  attributed  to  Mr.  Cass,  who 
tii/ew  all  his  personal  popularity  into  the  scale  of 
the  'success  of  his  rival  before  the  nominating  com- 
mittee. 

During  the  winter  of  1844-45,  Mr.  Cass  was 
elected  to  the  senate  of  the  United  .States,  by  the 
people  of  that  unit  of  the  confederacy  which  he 
might  almost  be  said  to  have  created.  On  the  4th 
of  March,  1845,  his  credentials  were  presented,  and 
he  took  his  seat.  On  the  first  formation  of  the  com- 
mittees of  the  Senate,  General  Cass  was  nominated 
unanimously  to  the  high  position  of  chairman  of  the 
committee  on  military  affairs,  due  to  him  from  his 
high  reputation  as  a  soldier,  which  had  been  ac- 
quired in  the  field,  and  not  in  mere  holiday  service. 
This  position  he  declined,  nor  did  he  occupy  it  until 
it  had  been  for  the  third  time  offered  him,  on  the 
coiumencement  of  the  present  session  of  congress. 

During  December,  1845,  Mr.  Cass,  as  a  member 
of  the  military  committee,  introduced  a  series  of 
resolutions  into  the  senate,  with  reference  to  the  na- 
tional defence,  especially  in  connection  with  the  diffi- 
culties with  Great  Britain  in  relation  to  Oregon. 
The  following  extract  demonstrates  that  the  old 
leaven  which  took  him  twice  to  the  frontier,  and 
prompted  him  to  share  in  the  perils  of  the  battle  of 
ihe  Thames,  had  not  lost  its  force.    lie  was  in  favour 


GENERAL     CASS. 


137 


of  maintaining  our  rights  to  their  utmost  point,  and 
though  both  parties  united  in  abandoning  the  pre- 
tensions of  the  nation,  the  people  will  remember  Mr. 
Cass  as  one  of  those  who  sought  to  maintain  them 
to  the  latest  hour.  Men  who  make  a  study  of  poli- 
ties, often  differ  from  those  who  examme  natiorjal 
affairs,  only  amidst  the  leisure  and  miermissioris  of 
their  ordinary  pursuits,  and  a  large  portion  of  llu 
people  disapproved  of  the  extinguishment  of  a  iitile 
of  the  nation's  pretensions.  Be  this  however  as  it 
may,  it  is  now  undeniable,  that  54^  40'  men  who 
talked  of"  manifest  destiny"  and  expulsion  of  Euro- 
pean influence,  were  found  in  each  of  the  great 
parties. 

It  was  during  the  month  of  March,  that  Mr.  ("ass 
delivered  his  great  speech  on  the  Oregon  question. 
One  of  the  largest  audiences  collected  during  the 
winter,  and  a  full  senate  awaited  the  expression  of 
the  opinions  of  one,  who  from  long  residence  abroad 
and  patient  study,  was  admirably  calculated  to  en- 
lighten the  people  on  this  most  knotty  and  difficult 
question.  The  following  paragraphs  have  been  se- 
lected as  admirably  expressing  the  tone  and  tenor 
of  his  remarks. 

"  It  pains  me,  sir,  to  hear  allusions  to  the  destruc- 
tion of  this  government,  and  to  the  dissolution  of 
this  confederacy.  It  pains  me,  not  because  they  in- 
spire me  with  any  fear,  but  because  we  ought  to 
have  one  unpronounceable  word,  as  the  Jews  had  of 
ol  i,  'ioi\  that  word  is  dissolution.  We  should  re- 
jv  ♦  l"e  feeling  from  our  hearts  and  its  name  from 
•u  ;  ;n  ues.  This  cry  of  "  Wo,  ivo,  to  Jerusalem,'* 
grate  i  harshly  upon  my  ears.  Our  Jerusalem  is 
neither  beleagured  nor  in  danger.  It  is  yet  the  city 
upon  a  hill ;  glorious  in  what  it  is,  still  more  glorious, 
by  the  blessing  of  God,  in  what  it  is  to  be — a  land- 
mark, inviting  the  nations  of  the  world,  struggling 
upon  the  stormy  ocean  of  political  oppression,  to  fol- 
low us  to  a  haven  of  safety  and  of  rational  liberty. 
13* 


138 


LIFE     O^ 


No  English  Titus  will  enter  our  temple  of  freedom 
throujf^h  a  breiich  in  tlie  battlements  to  bear  thence 
the  ark  of  our  (constitution  and  the  book  of  our  law, 
to  take  their  stations  in  a  triumphal  procession  in 
the  streets  of  modern  Rome,  as  trophies  of  conquest 
and  proofs  of  submission. 

"  Many  a  raven  has  croaked  in  my  day,  but  the 
augury  has  failed,  and  the  republic  has  marched  on- 
ward. Many  a  crisis  has  presented  itself  to  the  im- 
agination of  our  political  Cassandras,  but  we  have 
still  increased  in  political  prosperity  as  we  have  in- 
creased in  years,  and  that,  too,  with  an  accelerated 
progress  unknown  to  the  history  of  the  world.  We 
have  a  class  of  men  whose  eyes  are  always  upon  the 
future,  overi(  '  ;.  the  blessings  around  us,  and  for- 
ever apprehens;  jf  some  great  political  evil,  which 
is  to  arrest  our  course,  somewhere  or  other  on  this 
side  of  the  millennium.  To  them  we  are  the  image 
of  gold,  and  silver,  and  brass,  and  clay,  contrariety 
in  unity,  which  the  first  rude  blow  of  misfortune  is 
to  strike  from  its  pedestal. 

**  For  my  own  part,  I  consider  this  the  strongest 
government  on  the  face  of  the  earth  for  good,  and 
the  weakest  for  evil.  Strong,  because  supported  by 
the  public  opinion  of  a  people  inferior  to  none  of  the 
communities  of  the  earth  in  all  that  constitutes  mo- 
ral worth  and  useful  knowledge,  and  who  have 
breathed  into  their  political  system  the  breath  of  life; 
and  who  would  destroy  it,  as  they  created  it,  if  it 
were  unworthy  of  them,  or  failed  to  fulfil  their  just 
xpectations. 

"  And  weak  for  evil,  from  this  very  consideration, 
which  would  make  its  follies  and  its  faults  the  signal 
of  its  overthrow.  It  is  the  only  government  in  ex- 
istence which  no  revolution  can  subvert.  It  may 
be  changed,  but  it  provides  for  its  own  change, 
when  the  public  will  requires.  Plots  and  insurrec- 
tions, and  the  various  struggles,  by  which  an  op- 
pressed population  manifests  its  sufferings  and  seeks 


GENERAL    CASS. 


139 


the  recovery  of  its  rights,  have  no  place  here.  We 
have  nothing  to  fear  but  ourselves." 

The  conduct  of  Mr.  Cass  in  this  perilous  crisis 
was  appreciated  by  the  people.  The  skilful  man 
who  had  studied  the  tone  of  European  governments, 
and  the  pt  pie  who  always  have  an  intuitive  know- 
ledge of  their  own  rights  and  interests,  had  come  to 
the  sr.me  conclusion.  Both  the  one  and  the  other 
had  learned  that  a  people  lose  nothing  by  insisting 
on  their  rights,  and  gain  nothing  by  withdrawing 
from  their  just  pretensions. 

The  history  of  General  Cass  now  draws  towards 
a  close,  and  it  is  here  necessary  to  state,  that  he 
sustained,  with  unflinching  energy,  the  propriety  of 
hostilities  with  Mexico,  and  advocated  the  adoption 
of  the  most  rigorous  measures  to  bring  the  neigh- 
bouring republic  to  a  knowledge  of  what  was  due 
to  the  world  and  to  the  United  States.  Here,  too, 
the  people  coincided  with  him,  and  even  the  great 
champion  of  the  opposition  at  one  time  wished  **  that 
he  too  might  kill  a  Mexican." 

All  know  the  tenor  of  the  three  million  bill,  the 
object  of  which  was  to  place  at  the  disposal  of  the 
president  the  sum  of  three  millions  of  dollars,  to 
enable  him  to  conclude  a  peace  with  the  Mexican 
government.  The  propriety  of  this  bill  was  unde- 
niable, so  that  no  one  pretended  *o  assail  it.  A 
Si^nator,  however,  from  that  section  of  the  United 
SfatcH,  which  has  been  generally  under  the  control 
of  a  party  which  has  always  opposed  the  vindica- 
tion o{  national  rights,  introduced  into  the  senate  as 
an  amnndnient  to  the  bill,  what  has  been  known  as 
the  VVilmot  Proviso;  a  movement  which  originated 
in  the  house  of  representatives  on  a  resolution  of 
Mr.  Wilmot,a  member  of  Congress,  from  one  of  the 
most  obscure  districts  of  Pennsylvania,  and  pro- 
vided that  no  territory  obtained  by  conquest  or 
otherwise  from  Mexico,  should  be  annexed  to  the 
United  States,  except  with  the  understanding  that 


140 


LIFE    OF 


slavery  was  to  be  abolished  and  prohibited.  On 
this  occasion,  General  Cass,  also,  delivered  a  most 
eloquent  and  emphatic  speech,  and  voted  against  the 
amendment. 

During  this  congress  also,  the  tariff  of  184G,  and 
the  independent  treasury,  became  subjects  of  debate. 
On  these  occasions,  General  Cass  rendered  to  the 
Democratic  party  services  certainly  not  inferior  to 
those  of  the  persons  who  declared  themselves  the 
peculiar  vindicators  of  these  doctrines.  As  a  token 
of  admiration  of  his  services  on  this  occasion,  Gene- 
ral Cass  on  the  expiration  of  Congress,  was  invited 
to  partake  of  a  public  entertainment  at  Albany,  by 
the  Democratic  members  of  both  houses  of  the  legis- 
lature of  New  York.  The  honour,  however,  was 
declined. 

.  Amid  all  his  political  engagements,  he  had  found 
time  to  prepare  an  address,  which  he  delivered 
before  the  literary  societies  of  Dartmouth  College, 
New  Hampshire,  his  native  state,  at  the  annual  com- 
mencement of  that  institution.  The  societies  after- 
wards prepared  an  elegant  gold-headed  cane,  with 
appropriate  devices,  which  was  presented  to  him  in 
Washington,  on  the  4th  of  March,  1848. 

On  the  meeting  of  the  present  congress,  the  atti- 
tude Mr.  Benton,  the  previous  chairman  of  the  com- 
mittee of  niilitary  affairs,  had  chosen  to  assume 
a^rainst  more  than  one  of  the  most  distinguished 
officers  of  the  army,  having  rendered  it  manifestly 
improper  that  he  should  continue  longer  at  its  head, 
Mr.  Cass  was  selected  as  its  chairman.  The  best 
summary  of  his  opinions  on  the  great  questions  of 
war  and  annexation,  is  contained  in  the  following 
reply  to  an  address  of  Mr.  Mangum,  delivered  early 
m  the  session.        ....  v* 

"Now,  with  respect  to  the  progress  of  the  war, 
it  is  said  that  General  Scott  is  going  on  from  town 
to  town,  and  from  city  to  city,  conquering  all  before 
him.     I  am  very  glad  to  hear  it.     I  hope  that  the 


GENERAL    CASS. 


141 


commanding  general  will  continue  to  go  on  in  this 
way.  If  he  does  so,  I  have  no  doubt  he  will  con- 
quer Mexican  obstinacy,  and  thus  conquer  a  peace. 
I  have  already  expressed  my  opinions  with  regard 
to  the  war  in  Mexico,  and  have  nothing  to  say  on 
the  subject  now,  except  to  tell  the  Senator  from 
North  Carolina,  what  I  had  the  honour  to  say  to  the 
Senator  from  South  Carolina,  that  the  adoption  of 
any  resolutions  in  this  Senate  with  regard  to  any 
danger — if  danger  there  be — in  the  progress  of  this 
war,  would  be  but  as  the  idle  wind.  You  might  as 
well  stand  by  the  cataract  of  Niagara,  and  say  to  its 
waters  "  flow  not,"  as  to  the  American  people  **  an- 
nex not  territory,"  if  they  choose  to  annex  it.  It  is 
the  refusal  of  the  Mexican  people  to  do  us  justice 
that  prolongs  this  war.  It  is  that  which  operates 
on  the  public  mind,  and  leads  the  Senator  from 
North  Carol ir.ci  to  apprehend  a  state  of  things  which 
he  fears,  but  which,  for  myself,  I  do  not  anticipate. 
Let  me  say,  Mr.  President,  that  it  takes  a  great 
deal  to  kill  this  country.  We  have  had  an  alarming 
crisis  almost  every  year  as  long  as  I  can  recollect. 
I  came  on  the  public  stage  as  a  spectator  before  Mr. 
Jefferson  was  elected.  That  was  a  crisis.  Then 
came  the  embargo  crisis — the  crisis  of  the  non-inter- 
course—of the  war — of  the  bank — of  the  tariff — of 
the  removal  of  the  deposites — and  a  score  of  others. 
But  we  have  outlived  them  all,  and  advanced  in  all 
the  elements  of  power  and  prosperity  with  a  rapidity 
eretofore  unknown  in  the  history  of  nations.  If 
we  should  swallow  Mexico  to-morrow,  I  do  not  be- 
lieve it  would  kill  us.  The  Senator  from  North 
Carolina  and  myself  may  not  live  to  see  it,  but  I  am 
by  no  means  satisfied  that  the  day  will  not  come  m 
which  the  whole  of  the  vast  country  around  us  will 
form  one  of  the  most  magnificent  empires  that  the 
world  has  yet  seen — glorious  in  its  prosperity,  and 
still  more  glorious  in  the  establishment  and  perpetu- 


142 


LIFE    OF 


ation  of  the  principles  of  free  government  and  the 
blessings  which  they  bring  with  them." 

In  answer  to  a  letter  from  Mr.  Nicholson,  in  De- 
cember 1847,  General  Cass  pubiislifed  an  address,  in 
which  he  expressed  himself  opposed  to  the  Wilmot 
Proviso,  because  he  thought  all  legislation  in  relation 
to  and  restrictions  upon  territories  ill-advised.  He 
declared,  that  he  thought  all  domestic  institutions 
should  be  left  under  their  own  control,  and  proclaimed 
^    ,  explicitly  that  he  thought  congress  was  as  utterly 

disqualiAed  from  legislation  in  relation  to  slavery, 
as  to  define  the  relative  duties  of  husband  and  wife, 
and  the  obligation  of  landlord  and  tenant.  He  con- 
cluded with  the  following  passage — 

"  The  *  Wilmot  Proviso'  seeks  to  take  from  its 
legitimate  tribunal  a  question  of  domestic  policy, 
having  no  relation  to  the  Union,  as  such,  and  to 
transfer  it  to  another,  created  by  the  people  for  a 
special  purpose,  and  foreign  to  the  subject  matter 
involved  in  the  issue.  By  going  buck  to  our  true 
principles,  we  go  back  to  the  road  of  peace  and 
safety.  Leave  to  the  people,  who  will  be  affected 
by  tliis  question,  to  adjust  it  upon  their  own  respon- 
sibility and  in  their  own  manner,  and  we  shall  ren- 
der  another  tribute  to  the  original  principles  of  our 
government,  and  furnish  another  guaranty  for  its 
permanence  and  prosperity." 

The  foregoing  pages  have  recounted  briefly  the 
services  of  General  Cass.  He  had  become  one  of 
the  popular  favourites,  and  been  nominated  as  Pre- 
sident  by  the  state  conventions  of  Ohio  and  Michi- 
gan, and  he  had  been  highly  complimented  by  that 
of  Pennsylvania,  held  4th  March,  1848,  at  Harris- 
burg.  With  this  prestige,  he  was  nominated  as  the 
candidate  of  the  democratic  party  of  the  United 
States,  by  the  convention  at  Baltimore,  of  May  28, 
1848,  and,  after  several  ballotings,  received  the 
unanimous  vote.  His  antagonists  were  Mr.  Dallas 
and  Mr.  Buchanan,  of  Pennsylvania,  illustrious  in 


GENERAL     CASS. 


143 


the  political  history  of  the  nation,  and  disliiiguished 
in  the  annals  of  the  democratic  party,  and  others, 
who  from  minor  and  personal  grounds  had  been  sug- 
gested by  their  friends  as  candidates  for  the  high 
dignity  of  chief  magistrate  of  the  nation. 

On  these  events,  c(  mnient  is  now  gratuitous.  A 
thinking  people  wi''.  reflect  on  the  events  of  Mr. 
Cass's  long  career,  and,  whether  he  receive  their 
suffrage  or  not,  no  one  will  be  more  earnest  in 
wishes  for  their  success  and  prosperity. 

The  following  correspondence  on  the  subject  of 
the  nomination  of  Mr.  Cass  will  explain  his  pro- 
mises to  the  American  people,  and  the  history  of  his 
past  career  proves  that  he  will  fulfil  them — 

Baltimore,  iMny  23,  WiP.. 

Dear  Sir : — You  are  doubtless  apprised  of  the  fact 
that  a  National  Convention  of  republican  delegates 
from  the  various  portions  of  the  Union,  assembled 
in  this  city  on  the  22d  inst.,  for  the  purpose  of  se- 
lecting candidates  for  the  two  highest  executive 
offices  of  the  United  States.  We  are  gratified  in 
having  it  in  our  power  to  inform  you  that  the  con- 
vention, with  great  unanimity,  agreed  to  present 
your  name  to  the  country  for  the  office  of  President, 
and  requested  us  to  communicate  to  you  this  nomi- 
nation, and  solicit  your  acceptance.  In  performing 
this  duty,  which  we  do  with  great  pleai-ure,  it  is 
proper  that  the  resolutions  adopted  by  the  conven- 
tion, and  containing  the  principles  upon  which  they 
believe  the  government  ought  to  be  administered, 
should  be  laid  before  you.  These  const imto  a  plat- 
form broad  enough  for  all  true  democrats  to  stand 
upon,  and  narrow  enoujxh  to  exelude  all  those  who 
may  be  opposed  to  the  great  principles  of  the  demo- 
cratic party.  That  these  principles  will  m?et  with 
your  cordial  assent  and  support,  and  be  Illustrated 
in  your  administration,  if  called  to  this  high  office 
by  your  country,  we  do  not  for  a  moment  doubt; 


144 


I,  I  P  C     OP 


but  feci  ai5Siired,  tijat  while  you  exercise  forbear- 
ance witli  finmiess,  you  will  not  fail  to  exert  your 
faculties  to  maintain  the  principles  and  just  com- 
promises of  the  constitution,  in  a  spirit  of  modera- 
tion and  brotherly  love,  so  vitally  essential  to  the 
perpetuity  of  the  Union,  and  the  prosperity  and 
happiness  of  our  common  country.  We  offer  you 
our  sincere  congratulations  upon  this  distinguished 
mark  of  the  public  confidence,  and  arc,  with  senti- 
ments of  high  esteem  and  regard,  dear  sir. 

Your  friends  and  obedient  servants, 

A.  STEVENSON, 
Pres*t.  of  the  National  Convention. 

Robt.  P.  Dunlap,  Me. ;  J.  H.  Steele,  N.  H. ;  Ches- 
ter W.  Chapin,  Mass. ;  Ira  Davis,  Vt. ;  B.  B.  Thurs- 
ton, R.  I. :  Isaac  Toucy,  Conn.;  G.  D.  Wall,  N.  J.; 
J.  G.  Jones,  Penn. ;  A.  11.  Ramsey,  Ark. ;  G.  M. 
Bowers,  Mo. ;  C.  J.  McDonald,  Ga. ;  J.  A.  Winston, 
Ala.;  J.  C.  McCehee,  Fa. :  Powhatan  Ellis,  Miss.; 
R.  W.  English,  111.;  C.  G.  English,  Ta. ;  J.  Larwell, 
Ohio;  Thos.  J.  Rusk,  Texas;  AustinE.  Whig,  Mich.; 
Solo.  W.  Downs,  La.;  Thos.  Martin,  Tenn. ;  L. 
Saunders,  Ky. ;  James  Clarke,  Iowa;  S.  B.  Davis, 
Del.;  B.  C.  Howard,  Md. ;  Ed.  P.  Scott,  Va.;  W. 
N.  Edwards,  N.  C. ;  J.  M.  Commander,  S.  C. 

To  Gen.  Lewis  Cass,  Washington  City. 


Washington,  May  30,  1848. 

Gentlemen : — I  have  the  honour  to  acknowledge 
the  receipt  of  your  letter  of  the  28th  instant,  an- 
nouncing to  me  that  I  have  been  nominated  by  the 
Convention  of  the  Democratic  party,  its  candidate 
for  the  office  of  President  of  the  United  States,  at 
the  approaching  election. 

While  I  accept,  with  deep  gratitude,  this  distin- 
guished honour — and  distinguished  indeed  it  is — I 
do  so  with  a  fearful  apprehension  of  the  responsi- 
bility it  may  eventually  bring  with  it,  and  with  a 


G  ENER  A  L    CASS. 


145 


profound  conviction  that  it  is  the  kind  confidence  of 
my  fellow  citizens,  far  more  than  any  merit  of  my 
own,  which  has  placed  me  thus  prominently  before 
the  American  people.  And  fortunate  shall  I  be,  if 
this  confidence  should  find,  in  the  events  of  the  fu- 
ture, a  better  justification  than  is  furnished  by  thoso 
of  the  past. 

I  have  carefully  read  the  resolutions  of  the  Demo- 
cratic National  Convention,  laying  down  the  plat- 
form of  our  political  faith,  and  !  adhere  to  them  as 
firmly,  as  I  approve  them  cordially.  And  while 
thus  adhering  to  them,  I  shall  do  so  with  a  sacred 
regard  to  "the  principles  and  compromises  of  the 
constitution,"  and  with  an  earnest  desire  for  their 
maintenance  "  in  a  spirit  of  moderation  and  bro- 
therly love,  so  vitally  essential  to  the  perpetuity  of 
the  Union,  and  the  prosperity  and  happiness  of  our 
common  country;" — a  feeling  which  has  made  us 
what  we  are,  and  which,  in  humble  reliance  jpon 
Providence,  we  may  hope  is  but  the  beginning  of 
what  we  are  to  be.  If  called  upon  hereafter  to  ren- 
der an  account  of  my  stewardship,  in  the  great  tri'st 
you  desire  to  commit  to  me,  should  I  be  able  to 
show  that  I  had  truly  redeemed  the  pledge  thus  pub- 
licly given,  and  had  adhered  to  the  principles  of  the 
democratic  party  with  as  mucli  fidelity  and  success 
as  have  generally  marked  the  administration  of  the 
eminent  men  to  whom  that  party  i)as  hitherto  con- 
fided the  chief  executive  authority  of  tlie  govern- 
ment, I  could  prefer  no  higher  claim  to  the  favour- 
able consideration  of  the  country,  nor  to  the  impar- 
tial commendation  of  history. 

This  letter,  gentlemen,  closes  my  profession  of 
political  faith.  Receiving  my  first  apjuiintment 
from  tiiat  pure  patriot  and  great  expounder  of  Ame- 
rican democracy,  Mr.  Jefferson,  more  than  forty 
years  ago,  the  intervening  period  of  my  life  has 
been  almost  wholly  passed  in  the  service  of  my 
13 


140 


LIFl::     OF 


country,  and  has  been  marked  by  many  vicissitudes, 
and  attended  with  many  trying  circumstunces,  both 
in  peace  and  war.  If  my  conduct  in  these  situa- 
tions, and  tiie  opinions  I  have  been  called  upon  to 
form  and  express,  from  time  to  time,  in  relation  to 
all  the  ^reat  party  topics  of  the  day,  do  not  furnish 
a  clear  exposition  of  my  views  respecting  them, 
and  at  the  same  time  a  sufHcicnt  pledge  of  my  faith- 
ful adherence  to  their  practical  application,  when- 
ever and  wherever  I  may  be  required  to  act,  any- 
thing further  I  might  now  say,  would  be  mere  delu- 
sion, unworthy  of  myself,  and  justly  offensive  to  the 
great  party  in  whose  name  you  are  now  acting. 

My  immediate  predecessor  in  the  nomination  by 
the  democratic  party,  who  has  since  established  so 
many  claims  to  the  regard  and  confidence  of  his 
country,  when  announcing,  four  years  ago,  his  ac- 
ceptance of  a  similar  honour,  announced  also  his 
determination  not  to  be  a  candidate  for  re-election. 
Coinciding  with  him  in  his  views,  so  well  expressed, 
and  so  faithfully  carried  out,  I  beg  leave  to  say,  that 
no  circumstances  that  can  possibly  arise,  would 
induce  me  again  to  permit  my  name  to  be  brought 
forward  in  connexion  with  the  Chief  Magistracy  of 
our  country.  My  inclination  and  my  sense  of  duty 
equally  dictate  this  course. 

No  party,  gentlemen,  had  ever  higher  motives  for 
exertion,  than  has  the  great  Democratic  party  of 
the  United  States.  With  an  abiding  confidence  in 
the  rectitude  of  our  principles,  with  an  unshaken 
reliance  upon  the  energy  and  wisdom  of  public 
opinion,  and  with  the  success  which  has  crowned 
the  administration  of  the  government,  when  com- 
mitted to  its  keeping,  (and  it  has  been  so  committed 
during  more  than  three-fourths  of  its  existence,) 
what  has  been  done,  is  at  once  the  reward  of  pnst 
exertion  and  the  motive  of  future,  and,  at  the  same 
time,  a  guarantee  of   the  accomplishment  of  what 


GKNERAL     CA!IS. 


147 


we  have  to  do.  We  cannot  conceal  from  ourselves 
that  there  is  a  powerful  party  in  the  country,  dif- 
fering from  us  in  regard  to  many  fundamental  prin- 
ciples of  our  covernment,  and  opposi-d  to  us  in  their 
practical  application,  which  will  strive  as  zealously 
as  we  shall,  to  secure  the  ascendancy  of  their  prin- 
ciples, by  securing  the  election  of  their  candidate  in 
the  coming  contest.  That  party  is  composed  of  our 
fellow-citizens,  as  deeply  interested  in  the  prosper- 
ity of  our  common  country  as  we  can  be,  and  seek- 
ing as  earnestly  as  we  are  to  promote  and  perpetu- 
ate it. 

We  shall  soon  present  to  the  world  the  sublime 
spectacle  of  the  election  of  a  Chief  Magistrate  by 
twenty  millions  of  people,  without  a  single  serious 
resistance  to  the  laws,  or  the  sacrifice  of  the  life  of 
one  human  being — and  this,  too,  in  the  absence  of 
all  force  but  the  moral  force  of  our  institutions  ;  and 
if  we  should  add  to  all  this,  an  example  of  nutuol 
respect  for  the  motives  of  the  contending  parties, 
so  that  the  contest  might  be  carried  on  with  that 
firmness  and  energy  which  accompany  deep  con- 
viction, and  with  as  little  personal  asperity  as  poli- 
tical divisions  permit,  we  should  do  more  for  the 
great  cause  of  human  freedom  throughout  the  world, 
than  by  any  other  tribute  we  could  render  to  its 
value. 

We  have  a  government  founded  by  the  will  of 
all,  responsible  to  the  power  of  all,  and  adminis- 
tered for  the  good  of  all.  The  very  first  article  in 
the  Democratic  creed  teaches  that  the  people  are 
competent  to  govern  themselves ;  it  is,  indeed, 
rather  an  axiom  than  an  article  of  political  faith. 
From  the  days  of  General  Hamilton  to  our  days, 
the  party  opposed  to  us  —  of  whose  principles  he 
was  the  great  exponent,  if  not  the  founder  —  while 
it  has  changed  its  name,  has  preserved  essentially 
its  identity  of  character ;  and  the  doubt  he  enter- 


us 


LIFE     OF 


tained  and  taught  of  the  capacity  of  man  for  self- 
government,  has  exerted  a  marked  influence  upon 
its  action  and  opinions.  Here  is  the  very  starting- 
point  of  the  dirterence  between  the  two  great  par- 
tics  wliich  divide  our  country.  AH  other  differ- 
ences are  but  subordinate  and  auxiliary  to  this,  and 
may,  in  fact,  be  resolved  into  it.  I>ooking  with 
doubt  upon  the  issue  of  self-government,  one  party 
is  prone  to  think  the  public  authority  should  be 
strengthened,  and  to  fear  any  change,  lest  that 
change  might  weaken  the  necessary  force  of  the 
government ;  while  the  other,  strong  in  its  convic- 
tions of  the  intelligence  and  virtue  of  the  people, 
believes  that  original  power  is  safer  than  delegalod, 
and  that  the  solution  of  the  great  problem  of  good 
government  consists  in  governing  with  the  least 
force,  and  leaving  individual  action  a.-,  free  from 
restraint  as  is  compat  ble  with  the  preservation  of 
the  social  system,  thertby  securing  to  each  all  the 
freedom  which  is  not  essential  to  the  well-being  of 
the  whole. 

As  a  party,  we  ought  not  ^^o  mistake  the  signs  of 
the  times;  but  should  bear  it>  mind,  that  this  is  an 
age  of  progress — of  advancement  in  all  the  elements 
of  intellectual  power,  and  in  the  opinions  of  the 
world.  The  general  government  should  assume  no 
powers.  It  should  exercise  none  which  have  not 
been  clearly  granted  by  the  parties  to  the  federal 
compact.  We  ought  to  construe  the  constitution 
strictly,  according  to  the  received  and  sound  prin- 
ciples of  the  Jefferson  school.  But  while  rash  ex- 
periments should  be  deprecated,  if  the  government 
is  stationary  in  its  principles  of  action,  and  refuses 
to  accommodate  its  measures,  within  its  constitu- 
tional sphere  —  cautiously  indeed,  but  wisely  and 
cheerfully — to  the  advancing  sentiments  and  neces- 
sities of  the  age,  it  will  find  its  moral  force  impaired, 
and  the  public  will  determine  to  do  what  the  public 


GENERAL    CASS. 


149 


authority  itself  should  readily  do,  when  the  indica- 
tions of  popular  sentiments  are  clear,  and  clearly 
expressed. 

With  great  respect,  gentlemen,  I  have  the  honour 
to  be  your  obedient  servant, 

LEWIS  CASS. 

Hon.  A.  Stevenson, 
President  of  the  Democratic  Convention, 

and  Vice  Presidents  of  the  same.  ' 

A  few  days  after,  Mr.  Cass  resigned  his  seat  in 
the  Senate,  and  after  the  lapse  of  a  few  days  pro- 
ceeded homeward.  At  Baltimore,  Philadelphia,  New 
York,  and  everywhere,  he  was  received  most  enthu- 
siastically by  all  of  that  portion  of  the  people,  the 
representatives  of  which  had  re<^ognized  him  as  their 
candidate.  A  few  months  will  determine  whether 
he  will  occupy  the  Presidential  chair ;  at  all  events, 
he  is  wortiiy  to  do  so.  . 


The  following  \^ere  the  resolutions  of  the  conven- 
tion of  the  Democratic  party,  and  contain  its  creed. 
The  career  of  the  person  it  selected  as  a  type  is  an 
assurance  that  they  will  be  maintained. 

Resolved,  That  the  American  Democracy  place  their 
trust  in  the  intelligence,  the  patriotism,  and  the  discrimi- 
nating justice  of  the  American  people. 

Resolved,  That  we  regard  this  as  a  distinctive  feature 
of  our  political  creed,  which  we  are  proud  to  maintain 
before  the  world,  as  the  great  moral  element  in  a  form  of 
government,  springing  from  and  upheld  by  the  popular 
will ;  and  we  contrast  it  with  the  creed  and  practice  of 
federalism,  under  whatever  name  or  form,  which  seeks  to 
palsy  the  will  of  the  constituent,  and  which  conceives  no 
imposture  too  monstrous  for  the  popular  credulity. 

Resolved,  therefore,  That,  entertaining  these  views,  the 
Democratic  party  of  this  union,  through  thoir  delegates 
assembled  in  a  general  convention  of  the  States,  coming 
together  in  a  spirit  of  concord,  of  devotion  to  the  doc- 
trines and  faith  of  a  free  representative  government,  and 
appealing  to  their  fellow  citizens  for  the  rectitude  of  their 


1 


{]>< 


150 


LIFE     OF 


intentions,  renew  and  re-assert,  before  tl>e  American  peo- 
ple, the  declarations  of  principles  avowed  by  them  when, 
on  a  former  occasion,  in  general  convention,  they  pre- 
sented their  candidates  for  the  popular  suffrages : 

1.  That  the  federal  government  is  one  of  limited  powers, 
derived  solely  from  the  constitution,  and  the  grants  of 
power  shown  therein  ought  to  be  strictly  construed  by 
all  the  departments  and  agents  of  the  government ;  and 
that  it  is  inexpedient  and  dangerous  to  exercise  doubtful 
constitutional  powers. 

2.  That  the  constitution  does  not  confer  upon  the  gene- 
ral government  the  power  to  commence  and  carry  on  a 
general  system  of  internal  improvements. 

3.  That  the  constitution  does  not  confer  authority  upon 
the  federal  government,  directly  or  indirectly,  to  assume 
the  debts  of  the  several  States,  contracted  for  local  inter- 
nal improvements,  or  other  State  purposes;  nor  would 
such  assumption  be  just  and  expedient. 

4.  That  justice  and  sound  policy  forbid  the  federal  govern- 
njent  to  foster  one  branch  of  industry  to  the  detriment  of 
another,  or  to  cherish  the  interests  of  one  portion  to  the 
injury  of  another  portion  of  our  common  counti-y  ;  that 
every  citizen,  and  eveiy  section  of  the  country,  has  a 
right  to  demand  and  insist  upon  an  equality  of  rights  and 
privileges,  and  to  complete  and  ample  protection  of  per- 
sons and  property  Irom  domestic  violence  or  foreign  ag- 
gression. 

5.  That  it  is  the  duty  of  every  branch  of  the  govern- 
ment to  enforce  and  practise  the  most  rigid  economy  in 
conducting  our  public  affairs,  and  that  no  more  revenue 
ought  to  be  raised  than  is  required  to  defray  the  neces- 
sary expenses  of  the  government,  and  for  the  gradual  but 
certain  extinction  of  the  debt  created  by  the  prosecu- 
tion of  a  just  and  necessary  war,  after  peaceful  relations 
shall  have  been  restored. 

6.  That  congress  has  no  power  to  charter  a  national 
bank;  that  we  believe  such  an  institution  one  of  deadly 
hostility  to  the  best  interests  of  the  country,  dangerous 
to  our  republican  institutions  and  the  liberties  of  the 
people,  and  calculated  to  place  the  business  of  the  coun- 
try wifhin  the  control  of  a  concentrated  money  power, 
and  above  the  laws  and  the  will  of  the  people;  and  that 
the  result  of  Democratic  legislation,  in  this  and  all  other 
financial  measures  upon  which  issues  have  been  made 
between  the  two  political  parties  of  the  country,  have 
demonstrated  to  cimdld  and  practical  men  of  all  parties, 
their  souiiilijo.s>:,  .safety  and  utility  in  all  business  pursuits. 


GENERAL    CASS. 


151 


eadly 

rerous 

of  the 

coun- 

3ower, 

1  that 

other 

made 

have 

arties, 

rsuits. 


7.  That  congress  has  no  power  under  the  constitution 
to  interfere  with  or  control  the  domestic  institutions  of 
tlie  several  States,  and  that  such  States  are  the  sole  and 
proper  judges  of  everything  appertaining  to  their  own 
affairs,  not  prohibited  by  the  constitution;  tha'  all 
efforts  of  the  abolitionists  or  others,  made  to  induce 
congress  to  interfere  with  the  question  of  slavery,  or 
to  take  incipient  steps  in  relation  thereto,  are  calculated 
to  lead  to  the  most  alarming  and  dangerous  consequen- 
ces ;  and  that  all  such  efforts  have  an  inevitable  tendency 
to  diminish  the  happiness  of  the  people,  and  endanger  the 
stability  and  permanency  of  the  Union,  and  ought  not  to 
be  countenanced  by  any  friend  of  our  political  institu- 
tions. 

8.  That  the  separation  of  the  moneys  of  the  government 
from  banking  institutions  is  indispensable  for  the  safety 
of  the  funds  of  the  government  and  the  rights  of  the 
people. 

9.  That  the  liberal  principles  embodied  by  Jefferson  in 
the  Declaration  of  Independence,  and  sanctioned  in  the 
constitution,  which  make  ours  tiie  land  of  liberty,  and 
the  asylum  of  the  oppressed  of  every  nation,  have  ever 
been  cardinal  principles  in  the  Democratic  faith ;  and 
every  attempt  to  abridge  the  present  privilege  of  becom- 
ing citizens  and  the  owners  of  soil  among  us,  ought  to  be 
resisted  with  the  same  spirit  which  swept  the  alien  and 
sedition  laws  from  our  statute  books. 

Resolved,  That  the  proceeds  of  the  public  lands  ought 
to  be  sacredly  applied  to  the  national  objects  specified 
in  the  constitution;  and  that  we  are  opposed  to  any  law 
for  the  distribution  of  such  proceeds  among  the  States, 
as  alike  inexpedient  in  policy,  and  repugnan  the  con- 
stitution. 

Resolved,  That  we  are  decidedly  opposed  to  tukinp 
from  the  President  the  qualified  veto  power,  by  which  '  • 
is  enabled,  under  restrictions  and  responsibilities,  amply 
sufficient  to  guard  the  public  interest,  to  suspend  the  pas- 
sage of  a  bill  whose  merits  cannot  secure  the  approval 
of  "two-thirds  of  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives 
until  the  judgment  of  the  people  can  be  obtained  thereon, 
and  which  has  saved  the  American  people  from  the  cor- 
rupt and  tyrannical  domination  of  the  Bank  of  the  United 
States,  and  from  a  corrupting  system  of  general  internal 
improvements. 

Resolved,  That  the  war  with  Mexico,  provoked  on  her 
part,  by  years  of  insult  and  injury,  was  commenced  by 
her  army  crossing  the  Rio  Grande,  attacking  the  Ame- 


152 


LIFE     OF 


rican  troops,  and  invading  our  sister  State  of  Texas  — 
and  that  upon  all  the  principles  of  patriotism  and  the  laws 
of  nations,  it  is  a  just  and  necessary  war  on  our  part,  in 
which  every  American  citizen  should  have  shown  him- 
self on  the  side  of  his  country,  and  neither  morally  nor 
physically,  by  word  or  deed,  have  given  "  aid  and  comfort 
to  the  enemy." 

Resolved,  That  we  would  be  rejoiced  at  the  assurances 
of  a  peace  with  Mexico,  founded  on  the  just  principles  of 
indemnity  for  the  past  and  security  ibr  the  future;  but 
that  while  the  ratification  of  the  liberal  treaty  offered  to 
Mexico  remains  in  doubt,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  country  to 
sustain  the  administration  in  every  measure  necessary  to 
provide  for  the  vigorous  prosecution  of  the  war,  should 
that  treaty  be  rejected. 

Resolved,  That  the  officers  and  soldiers  who  have  car- 
ried the  arms  of  their  country  into  Mexico,  have  crowned 
it  with  imperishable  glory.  Their  unconquerable  cour- 
age, their  daring  enterprise,  their  unfaltering  persever- 
ance and  fortitude  when  assailed  on  all  sides  by  innume- 
rable foes,  and  that  more  formidable  enemy — the  diseases 
of  the  climate  —  exalt  their  devoted  patriotism  into  the 
highest  heroism,  and  give  them  a  right  to  the  profound 
gratitude  of  their  country  and  the  admiration  of  the 
world. 

Resolved,  That  the  Democratic  National  Convention 
of  the  thirty  States  composing  the  American  Republic, 
tender  their  frpturnal  congratulations  to  the  National 
Convention  of  the  Republic  of  France,  now  assembled 
as  the  free  suffrage  representatives  of  the  sovereignty 
of  thirty-five  millions  of  Republicans,  to  establish  govern- 
ments on  those  eternal  principles  of  equal  right,  for  which 
their  Lafayette  and  our  Washington  fought,  side  by 
side,  in  the  struggle  for  our  own  National  Independence ; 
and  we  would  especially  convey  to  them  and  the  whole 
people  of  France,  our  earnest  wishes  for  the  consolidation 
of  their  Liberties,  through  the  wisdom  that  shall  guide 
their  councils,  on  the  basis  of  a  Democratic  Constitution, 
not  derived  from  the  grants  or  concessions  of  kings  or 
dynasties,  but  originating  from  the  only  true  source  of 
political  power  recognized  in  the  States  of  tiiis  Union; 
the  inherent  and  inalienable  right  of  the  people,  in  their 
sovereign  capacity,  to  make  and  to  amend  their  forms  of 
government  in  such  manner  as  the  welfare  of  the  com- 
munity may  require. 

Resolved,  That  in  the  recent  development  of  this  grand 
political  truth,  of  the  sovereignty  of  the  people  and  thei' 


OBNER  AL    CASS. 


153 


capacity  and  power  of  self-government,  which  is  pros- 
trating thrones  and  erecting  republics  on  the  ruins  of 
despotism  in  the  old  world,  we  feel  that  a  high  and  sacred 
duty  is  devolved  with  increased  responsibility  upon  the 
Democratic  party  of  this  country,  as  the  party  of  the 
people,  to  sustain  and  advance  among  us  constitutional 
liberty,  equality  and  fraternity,  by  continuing  to  resist  all 
monopolies  and  exclusive  legislation  for  the  benefit  of  the 
few  at  the  expense  of  the  many,  and  by  a  vigilant  and 
constant  adherence  to  those  principles  and  compromises 
of  tlie  constitution  which  are  broad  enough  and  strong 
enough  to  embrace  and  uphold  the  Union  as  it  was,  the 
Union  as  it  is,  and  the  Union  as  it  shall  be  in  the  full  ex- 
pansion of  the  energies  and  capacity  of  this  great  and 
progressive  people. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  forwarded 
through  the  American  Minister  at  Paris  to  the  National 
Convention  of  the  Republic  of  France, 

Resolved,  That  the  fruits  of  the  great  political  triumph 
of  1844,  which  elected  James  K.  Polk  and  George  M. 
Dallas  President  and  Vice  President  of  the  United  States, 
have  fulfilled  the  hopes  of  the  Democracy  of  the  Union ; 
in  defeating  the  declared  purposes  of  their  opponents  to 
create  a  National  Bank,  in  preventing  the  corrupt  and 
unconstitutional  distribution  of  the  land  proceeds,  from 
the  common  treasury  of  the  Union,  for  local  purposes  ;  in 
protecting  the  currency  and  the  labour  of  the  country 
from  the  ruinous  fluctuations,  and  guarding  the  money 
of  the  people  for  the  use  of  the  people,  by  the  establish- 
ment of  the  Constitutional  Treasury;  in  the  noble  im- 
pulse given  to  the  cause  of  Free  Trade,  by  the  repeal  of 
the  Taritf  of  1842,  and  the  creation  of  the  more  equal, 
honest  and  productive  Tariff  of  1846;  and,  that,  in  our 
opinion,  it  would  be  a  fatal  error  to  weaken  the  bands  of 
political  organization  by  which  these  great  reforms  have 
been  achieved, — and  risk  them  in  the  hands  of  their  known 
adversaries,  with  whatever  delusive  appeals  they  may 
solicit  our  surrender  of  that  vigilance,  which  is  the  only 
safeguard  of  liberty. 

Resolved,  That  the  confidence  of  the  Democracy  of  the 
Union,  in  the  principles,  capacity,  firmness  and  integrity 
of  James  K.  Polk,  manifested  by  his  nomination  and  elec- 
tion in  1844,  has  been  signally  justified  by  the  strictness 
of  his  adherence  to  sound  Democratic  doctrines,  by  the 
purity  of  purpose,  the  energy  and  ability  which  have  cha- 
racterized his  administration  in  all  our  affairs  at  home  and 
abroad;  that  we  tender  to  him  our  cordial  congratulations 


154 


LIFE    OF 


upon  the  brilliant  success  which  has  hitherto  crowned  his 
patriotic  efforts,  and  assure  him,  in  advance,  that  at  the 
expiration  of  his  presidential  term  he  will  carry  with  him 
to  his  retirement,  the  esteem,  respect  and  admiration  of  a 
grateful  country. 

Resolved,  That  this  Convention  hereby  present  to  the 
people  of  the  United  States,  Lewis  Cass,  of  Michigan,  as 
the  candidate  of  the  Democratic  party  for  the  office  of 
President,  and  William  O.  Butler,  of  Kentucky,  as  the 
candidate  of  the  Democratic  party  for  the  office  of  Vice 
President  of  the  United  States. 


On  the  reception  of  the  news  of  the  recent  revo 
lution  of  France,  the  greatest  enthusiasm  was  ex 
cited  in  the  United  States,  and  public  meetings 
were  held  in  all  the  principal  cities  of  the  Union 
To  a  large  and  enthusiastic  assemblage  at  Washing 
ton,  March  28,  1848,  General  Cass  delivered  an  ad- 
dress, from  which  we  make  the  following  extracts : 

I  came  here,  fellow-citizens,  to  hear  and  to  feel,'  rathei 
than  to  talk — not  so  much  to  address  you,  as  to  mingle 
my  congratulations  with  yours,  upon  the  stirring  and 
striking  events,  which  are  now  passing  in  Europe,  and 
the  soimd  of  which  is  borne  upon  the  wings  of  tiie  wind 
to  every  civilized  country  of  the  earth.  I  yield  to  abler 
and  to  younger  speakers  the  task  of  expressing  such  sen- 
timents, as  become  the  subject  and  the  occasion ;  but  I 
yield  in  no  jot  nor  tittle  to  any  one  in  the  interest  they 
excite,  and  the  hopes  they  inspire.  The  shouts  of  liberty 
reach  us  from  the  Old  World :  let  us  send  back  their 
echoes  from  the  New.  Let  us  be  grateful  to  Him,  who 
holds  in  his  hand  the  fate  of  nations,  and  who  guides  their 
purposes  by  wiser  purposes  of  his  own ;  let  us  be  grateful 
to  Him,  who  is  breaking  the  bond  of  the  oppressed,  and 
setting  the  captive  free. 

Throughout  a  considerable  part  of  Europe  man  is 
awakening  to  a  conviction  of  his  rights,  and  to  a  know- 
ledge of  his  strength ;  and,  with  the  feelings  which  these 
inspire,  comes  the  determination  to  assert,  and,  if  neces- 
sary, to  employ  the  other.  The  abuses  of  centuries  are 
giving  way  before  the  progress  of  the  age,  and  the  foun- 
dations of  government  are  investigated  with  a  zeal  not  to 
be  rebuked,  and  with  a  stern  purpose,  which  nothing  will 
satisfy  but  the  truth.    The  great  tide  of  freedom  is  rolling 


GENERAL     CASS. 


155 


onwards  from  the  shores  of  Calabria  to  the  English  chan- 
nel, and  institutions,  originating  in  barbarous  ages  and 
sanctioned  by  time  and  habit,  but  which  have  sacrificed 
the  happiness  of  the  many  to  the  power  of  the  few,  are 
giving  way  beibre  it  with  as  little  resistance  as  regret.  I 
hope,  for  one,  that  the  chalk-bound  cliffs  of  England  will 
not  stay  the  progress  of  this  salutary  reform,  but  that  it 
will  reach  her  palaces  and  her  hovels,  correcting  the  great 
moral  and  physical  evils  which  now  press  upon  her 
people. 

Fellow-citizens,  I  do  not  deny  that  there  is  much  to  be 
commended  in  the  institutions  of  England,  social  and  po- 
litical. I  do  not  deny  that  she  has  contributed  her  full 
share  to  the  intellectual  progress  of  the  age.  I  do  not 
deny  that  there  is  a  great  deal  of  moral  worth  in  that 
country,  and  many  high  traits  of  character  well  worthy 
of  imitation.  But  the  practical  administration  of  her 
government  is  entitled  to  no  si'ch  commendation.  It  is 
arbitrary  and  oppressive — administered  by  a  chosen  class 
for  their  own  benefit,  and  not  for  the  masses.  It  sits  like 
an  incubus  upon  the  great  body  of  the  people  in  two- 
thirds  of  the  home  empire ;  and  in  the  other  third — Ireland 
— it  has  pressed  down  the  people  into  a  state  of  humilia- 
tion, elsewhere  unknown  in  Christendom.  Its  right  of 
primogeniture,  its  feudal  privileges,  and  its  aristocratic 
tendencies,  have  created  such  an  inequality  of  property, 
that  scenes  of  distress — aye,  of  distress  on  the  largest 
scale — are  passing  there  in  a  manner  unknown  in  modern 
history.  It  is  very  well  to  talk  of  the  blessings  of  the 
English  law — of  trial  by  jury  and  the  habeas  corpus. 
These  are  good  things  for  those  who  can  enjoy  them. 
But  bread  is  a  better  thing  for  a  starving  family  than  trial 
by  jury,  and  a  house  is  a  better  protection  than  a  liabeas 
corpus.  Probably  on  the  face  of  the  globe  there  is  no 
such  squalid  misery  as  in  the  hovels  of  Ireland ;  nor  was 
the  spirit  of  man  ever  pressed  down,  as  there,  by  the 
overpowering  evils  which  surround  him.  Ireland  is 
scarcely  the  country  of  Irishmen.  It  is  the  country  of 
England,  which  the  sons  of  Ireland  inhabit,  and  where 
they  exist  rather  than  live.  And  this  oppression  sends 
them  to  every  region  of  the  globe;  and  wherever  they 
go  they  carry  with  them  an  instinctive  hatred  of  tyranny 
and  the  love  of  liberty.  They  have  made  most  valuable 
accessions  to  our  population,  and  in  peace  and  war  have 
fulfilled  all  the  duties  of  American  citizens,  as  zealously 
as  those  born  in  our  country.  From  the  heights  of  Abra- 
ham, watered  with  the  blood  of  Montgomery,  to  the  very 


156 


LIFE     OF 


last  battle  fought  in  Mexico,  where  is  the  field  crowned 
by  the  valor  and  exertions  of  the  American  troops,  in 
which  the  blood  of  Ireland  has  not  mingled  with  our  own, 
and  in  which  her  native,  but  our  adopted,  sons  have  not 
nobly  rallied  around  the  standard  of  their  chosen  home? 

England  is  in  that  condition,  which  requires  but  one  firm 
effort  on  the  part  of  her  people  to  extend  those  principles 
of  free  government  which  nominally  belong  to  the  coun- 
try, but  which  practically  are  confined  to  the  few ;  to  ex- 
tend them  to  the  great  body  of  the  people,  and  thus  to 
create  a  government  for  the  benefit  of  all,  directed  by  all, 
and  accountable  to  all. 

The  fiscal  oppression  of  England  is  of  itself  a  phenome- 
non. The  sum  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  millions  of  dol- 
lars is  every  year  ground  out  of  the  people  for  general 
purposes,  besides  perhaps  an  equal  sum  for  the  mainte- 
nance of  the  clergy,  for  the  support  of  the  poor,  and  for 
a  vast  variety  of  other  local  objects.  More  than  one-half 
of  these  two  hundred  and  fifty  millions  of  dollars  is  ap- 
plied to  the  payment  of  the  interest  of  the  national  debt, 
a  large  portion  of  which  was  contracted  by  Pitt,  in  liis 
odious  efforts  to  check  the  spirit  of  liberty  on  the  conti- 
nent of  Europe.  Tins  system  seems  to  be  approaching 
its  crisis;  for,  this  year,  in  a  time  of  profoiind  peace,  the 
revenues  are  insufficient  to  meet  the  expenditures.  Where 
is  the  true-hearted  American  who  does  not  long  for  the 
termination  of  such  a  state  of  things  ] 

One  of  the  strangest  events,  in  this  day  of  great  events, 
is  the  origin  of  these  movements  in  favour  of  liberty  upon 
the  continent  of  Europe.  Whence  came  they  1  From 
the  Eternal  City — from  the  head  of  the  Catholic  religion 
— the  successor  of  St.  Peter.  Immediately  on  his  eleva- 
tion to  the  Pontificate,  the  Pope  avowed  his  attachment 
to  free  principles,  and  from  the  Vatican  went  out  the  de- 
cree which  is  now  spreading  through  the  earth.  The 
Pontiff,  who  holds  the  keys  of  St.  Peter,  has  found  a  key 
to  unlock  the  recesses  of  the  human  heart.  His  moral 
courage  was  but  the  more  tried  by  the  difficulties  of  his 
position.  The  abuses  of  the  government  were  the  work 
of  ages,  and  had  entered  into  all  the  habits  of  life  and  the 
ramifications  of  society ;  and  he  was  surrounded  by  des- 
potic governments,  jealous  of  the  first  aspirations  of  lib- 
erty, and  maintaining  their  sway  by  powerful  armies. 
The  Austrian,  too,  with  his  Pandours  and  his  Croats  from 
the  l^anks  of  the  Danube,  had  descended  the  ridges  of  the 
Alps,  and  had  spread  himself  over  the  sunny  plains  of 
Italy.     Almost  in  sight  of  the  dome  of  St.  Peter's,  he 


GENERAL     CASS. 


157 


.rmies. 

s  from 

of  the 

ins  of 

i-'s,  he 


watched,  witli  interest  and  with  many  a  threatening  word, 
the  progress  ol"  the  Pope.  But  the  work  went  on.  Naples 
is  in  a  state  of  revolution;  Tuscany  and  Sardinia  in  a 
state  of  reform;  and  France  of  apparently  peaceful  pro- 
gress in  the  new  career  opened  to  her. 

I  should  not  have  said  one  word  to  y- n  to-night,  my 
fellow-citizens,  had  1  not  been  induced  to  do  so  by  a  par- 
ticular circumstance.  A  few  years  since,  when  in  Franco, 
1  published  in  the  Democratic  Review  some  remarks  upon 
the  condition  of  that  country.  Among  these  were  allu- 
sions to  the  tnieules,  which  wereoilon  breaking  out  in  the 
streets  of  Paris,  and  occasioning  consternation  and  alarm 
to  the  quiet  citizens,  who  wore  disturbed  in  their  occupa- 
tions by  tho  din  of  arms,  and  sometimes  by  bloody  con- 
flicts in  the  midst  of  their  city;  and  all  this  without  the 
least  beneficial  result,  or  any  expectation  of  it.  They 
were  not  revolutions;  they  were  riots  and  insurrections. 
I  communicated  also  the  facts,  as  disclosed  by  the  wit- 
nesses on  the  trials  of  persons  indicted  for  these  offences. 
It  was  shown  conclusively,  that  the  persons  engaged  in 
them  belonged  to  secret  societies  sworn  to  abolish  the 
Christian  religion,  to  destroy  all  the  rights  of  property, 
and  to  overturn,  in  fact,  social  order.  I  was  describing 
more  particularly  what  in  France  were  technically  called 
the  days  of  May,  1839.  The  sentiments  of  a  journal, 
which  favoured  these  proceedings,  may  be  judged  by  tho 
terms  it  employs  when  speaking  of  the  United  States, 
whose  government  it  calls  "a  ridiculous  republic,  and  a 
moneyed  aristocracy."  The  following  quotations  mark 
its  spirit  and  objects : 

"  It  is,  without  doubt,  beautiful  to  be  an  atheist ;  but 
that  is  not  enough,"  &c. 

"  It  ought  to  say,  all  that  is  connected  with  religious 
worship  is  contrary  to  our  progress;  while,  at  the  same 
time,  whenever  people  are  religious  they  talk  nonsense." 

"  Our  Saviour  i=^        ed  the  democratic  son  of  Mary." 

My  condemna  >(  such  principles  has  recently  been 

construed  into  a  condemnation  of  the  principles  of  revo- 
lutions brought  about  by  the  people  seeking  the  redress 
of  their  grievances.  There  never  was  a  feeling  of  my 
heart,  a  word  of  my  mouth,  nor  an  act  of  my  life,  which 
would  give  any  man  a  right  to  call  in  question  my  sym- 
pathy with  the  struggling  masses,  or  the  sincerity  of  my 
hopes  for  their  success;  and  I  defy  any  man  to  quote  from 
my  remarks  upon  the  condition  of  France,  one  single  sen- 
tence inconsistent  with  the  progress  of  rational  liberty. 

What  I  thought,  and  what  I  foresaw,  are  shown  by  the 
14 


*e 


158 


LIFE    OF 


following  extract,  alluding  to  the  condition  of  Europe, 
and  to  the  changes  that  were  in  progress : 

"  i5ut  in  Europe,  this  last  great  element  of  public  hap- 
piness is  b(;y()nd  the  reach  of  the  governments,  and  it  is 
therefore  the  more  necessary  that  they  should  use  all  the 
means  within  their  power  to  in)prove  the  condition  of  the 
poorer  classes  of  society,  to  extend  the  advantages  of 
education  to  all,  to  diminish  the  public  expenses,  to  put  a 
stop  to  oppressions,  and  to  introduce  the  most  impartial 
equality  before  the  law,  and  into  public  employments.  In 
this  way,  and  in  this  alone,  can  the  political  etfervescence 
which  is  everywhere  visible  in  Europe,  be  safely  guided, 
when  it  cannot  be  wholly  controlled.  There  is  a  forward 
movement  in  opinion,  which  can  neither  be  misunderstood 
nor  put  down.  It  has  produced  great  chaljges,  and  will 
produce  still  greater.  Its  operation  is  a  question  of  time 
only;  but  the  extent  and  intensity  of  that  operation  de- 
pend esisentially  upon  the  wisdom  and  justice  of  the 
governments,  and  upon  the  forbearance  of  the  people. 
Happy  will  it  be  for  both,  if  the  changes  demanded  by  the 
present  state  of  society,  and  called  for  by  the  thinking 
class  of  the  community,  are  made  in  time  to  prevent  revo- 
lutions, instead  of  being  the  consequences  of  them." 

Is  there  one  American  in  this  broad  land,  who  will  not 
reciprocate  these  sentiments] 

Unfortunately  for  the  late  dynasty,  these  liberal  views 
were  not  adopted  by  it;  and  if  its  principles  did  not  un- 
dergo a  change,  certainly  many  of  its  most  obnoxious 
measures  were  adopted  and  pursued  after  that  period,  and 
have  given  to  its  government  a  character  for  insincerity 
and  love  of  power,  which,  if  they  were  before  charged 
upon  it,  it  had  not  acquired  by  such  a  cotirse  of  conduct 
as  has  since  been  adopted,  and  which  left  the  French 
people  no  choice  between  tame  submission  and  armed 
resistance. 

Some  peculiar  characteristics  have  marked  the  progress 
of  the  recent  events  in  France.  The  capital  is  surrounded 
by  a  wall  of  circumvallation  upwards  of  thirty  miles  in 
extent.  Detached  forts  strengthen  the  approaclies,  and 
smaller  defensive  works  are  placed  at  regular  intervals 
along  the  whole  wall.  It  is  an  immense  fortification,  one 
of  the  most  extensive  in  the  world.  It  completely  com- 
mands the  city  of  Paris,  and  is  garnished  with  an  im- 
mense train  of  artillery,  ready  for  any  operations  the 
government  might  direct.  In  this  fortification,  and  in  the 
city  itself,  when  these  troubles  broke  out,  the  government 
had  collected  a  great  army  of  one  hundred  thousand  men, 


GENERAL    CASS. 


159 


n,  one 
com- 

n  im- 

Ds   the 

in  the 

nment 
men, 


among  the  best  disciplined  troops  in  the  world,  and  col- 
lected for  the  very  purpose  of  putting  down  .ill  opposition 
to  the  course  it  was  proposed  to  adopt.  And  vvliat  was 
the  result  of  this  great  political  foresight,  as  it  seemed  to 
he  ]  The  fortifications  did  not  fire  a  gun ;  the  resistance 
in  the  streets  did  not  produce  as  much  bloodshed  us  an 
ordinary  emeute;  and  the  troops  fraternized  with  the 
people,  and  went  over  to  them  in  the  hour  of  trial.  The 
colossal  power  which  Louis  Philippe  had  been  building  up 
for  eighteen  years,  disappeared  like  a  dream.  His  govern- 
ment was  dissolved,  his  dynasty  terminated,  his  family 
expelled  from  the  kingdom,  and  tne  people  took  possession 
of  the  power  that  belonged  to  them.  And  what  then  1 
Any  more  blood  1  Any  more  violence?  Any  of  those 
reactions  of  feeling,  which  have  too  often  marked  the  pro- 
gress of  revolutions,  and  have  rendered  the  word  itself 
unacceptable  to  timid  earsi  There  has  been  nothing  of 
all  this;  and  let  us  hope  there  will  not  be.  A  provisional 
government  has  been  organized,  composed  of  able  and 
eminent  men,  some  of  them  known  through  the  civilized 
world,  and  all  of  them  well  fitted  for  their  position,  and 
with  characters  which  furnish  the  best  guaranty  for  their 
patriotic  conduct.  They  have  summoned  a  national  as- 
sembly to  convene  in  a  short  time,  in  order  to  prepare  a 
constitution  for  the  French  people ;  and,  in  the  mean  time, 
all  violence  and  resistance  have  ceased.  The  equality  of 
all  French  citizens  before  the  law  has  been  acknowledged ; 
universal  suffrage  has  been  established ;  and  the  great 
principles  of  liberty  have  been  recognized  as  freely  as 
they  are  recognized  in  our  own  country.  And  a  public 
vessel  has  actually  been  offered  to  one  of  the  King's  sons, 
to  enable  him  to  go  where  he  pleased.  What  a  beautiful 
illustration  are  all  these  proceedings  of  the  progress  of  a 
healthful  public  opinion  in  France;  and  what  a  beautiful 
example  for  the  other  nations  of  Europe,  who  feel  the 
same  evils,  and  may  resort  to  the  same  remedy ! 

The  people  of  this  country  are  no  propagandists.  They 
permit  no  other  nation  to  interfere  with  them  in  their  own 
internal  concerns,  and  they  seek  to  interfere  with  no  other 
in  theirs.  They  proclaimed,  on  the  4th  of  July,  1776,  that 
it  is  the  right  of  every  people  to  abolish  its  government, 
and  to  institute  a  new  one — "Jaying  its  foundations  on 
such  principles,  and  organizing  its  powers  in  such  form, 
as  to  them  shall  seem  most  likely  to  effect  their  safety  and 
happiness."  But  every  people  must  judge  for  themselves, 
as  well  whether  they  will  continue  an  existing  govern- 
ment, as  whether  they  will  change  it ;  and  if  so,  what 


IGO 


LIFE    OF    GENERAL    CASS. 


form  they  will  substitute.  We  know  the  priceless  value 
of  liberty;  we  know  it  suits  our  condition,  and  that  it  has 
^iven  us  a  greater  measure  of  political  happiness  than 
any  nation  ever  enjoyed  before  us.  But,  while  we  feel  all 
this,  and  wish  that  every  other  people  were  as  well  fitted 
for  the  enjoyment  of  liberty  as  we  are,  still  these  convic- 
tions and  these  wishes  have  no  influence  upon  our  politi- 
cal conduct; — we  hold  all  other  nations  as  our  fathers  did 
— enemies  in  war ;  in  peace,  friends. 

But  there  is  no  just  principle  of  national  comity,  which 
forbids  us  to  indulge  and  express  a  sympathy  with  strug- 
gling millions,  who,  feeling  their  rights  and  their  oppres- 
sions, are  rising  in  their  strength  to  recover  their  long- 
lost  freedom.  We  ougjit  neither  to  shut  our  ears  to  the 
welcome  sound  of  their  successful  efforts,  nor  our  hearts 
to  the  emotions  which  these  are  so  well  calculated  to  tn- 
sjare.  France  does  not  want  men  nor  means  to  defend 
herself,  or  to  maintain  the  position  she  has  assumed.  She 
has  sons  enough  to  protect  her  and  her  rights,  and  all 
they  have  is  at  her  disposal.  But  the  sympathy  of  twenty 
millions  of  people  is  a  present  fit  to  send  across  the  At- 
lantic— and  of  a  people,  too,  who  have  preceded  France 
in  the  great  career  into  which  she  has  just  entered,  and 
who  can  tell  her  that  it  is  beset  by  no  trials  or  difficulties, 
which  time  and  experience  may  not  easily  overcome.  It 
will  make  her  joy  the  greater  for  what  she  has  done,  and 
her  confidence  the  firmer  for  what  she  has  to  do.  Aban- 
doning, then,  the  question  of  party,  let  us  all  come  up  to 
this  great  work.  Let  neither  Whig  nor  Democrat  be  con- 
cerned in  it.  It  is  the  right  and  the  duty  of  American 
citizens,  and  all  other  distinctions  should  be  swallowed  up 
in  that  sacred  term.  Let  us  do  this;  and  since  the  return 
of  Columbus  to  Spain,  no  higher  tribute  will  have  been 
paid  to  the  advancing  opinions  of  the  age,  and  no  nobler 
present  made  by  the  New  World  to  the  Old. 


■I  "i 


.  »>   } 


alue 
has 
han 
}lall 
tted 
ivic- 
3liti- 
idid 


hich 
rug- 
tres- 
ang- 
the 
tarts 
3  in- 
fend 
She 
]  all 
enty 
(  At- 
ince 
and 
ties, 
.  It 
and 
ban- 
p  to 
con- 
ican 
}  up 
turn 
)ecn 
bier 


MAJOK-OF.  NERiL   WITiLIAM    O.   BTTLER. 


SKETCH 


or  THE 


PUBLIC    SERVICES 


MAJOR-GENERAL  W.  0.  BUTLER. 


14' 


(161) 


r 


CONTENTS 


■»^#»^»^^»^N^W^»M^^»*« 


CHAPTER  1. 

Family  History — Volunteers  as  Private — Appointed  in 
the  Army —  River  Raisin  —  Prisoner —  Promotion  — 
March  South  —  Gen.  Call's  Letter  * Page  166 

CHAPTER  IL 

Appointment  as  Major-General  —  Service  in  Mexico— 
Monterey  —  Wounded  —  Return  Home  —  Second  in 
Command  in  Mexico — Return  of  Greneral  Scott,  Com- 
mander-in-Chief   187 


(163) 


tA- 


.!'    i^ 


n,'-^.f  .-J' 


\ri 


I 

fi 

u 
k 
1 
b 

B 
ol 
t\ 
di 


le 
es 
re 

P« 
fn 

ev 

tic 

to 

pr 

fai 

17 

vei 


LIFE 

Of 

MAJOR-GENERAL   BUTLER. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Family  History — Volunteers  as  Private — Appointed  in  the  Army 
— River  Raisin — Prisoner — Promotion — March  South — Gen. 
Call's  Letter. 

Major-General  William  O.  Butler,  of  the 
United  States  volunteer  service,  is  a  member  of  a 
family  of  soldiers.  His  grandfather,  Thomas  But- 
ler, was  born  April  6,  1720,  at  the  town  of  Kil- 
kenny in  Ireland,  where  also  he  was  married  in 
1742.  Three  of  his  five  sons  were  born  in  Ireland, 
but  the  other  two.  Pierce,  the  father  of  William  O. 
Butler,  and  Edward  the  junior  of  all,  were  natives 
of  Pennsylvania.  Every  one  of  these  men,  and  all 
the  sons  of  each,  with  the  exception  of  one  indivi- 
dual, distinguished  as  a  judge,  were,  soldiers. 

Francis  P.  Blair,  Esq.,  in  a  sketch  of  General  But- 
ler, recently  published,  states  that  Richard,  the  eld- 
est, was  a  lieutenant-colonel  of  the  celebrated  rifle 
corps  of  Morgan,  and  attributes  to  him  much  of  the 
peculiar  celebrity,  that  famous  body  of  men  acquired 
from  the  high  discipline  which  separated  it  from 
every  other  corps  of  the  same  arm  of  the  revolu- 
tionary army.  On  the  promotion  of  Colonel  Morgan 
to  a  higher  grade,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Butler  was  also 
promoted, and  as  its  colonel  led  his  old  regiment  in  the 
famous  coup  de  main  of  Wayne  on  Stony  Point.  In 
1790,  he  was  appointed  a  major-general,  and  No- 
vember 4th  of  the  next  year,  fell  in  the  bloody  and 

165 


166 


LI  FE    OF 


unfortunate  but  gallant  contest  of  St.  Clair  with  the 
Indians.  His  death  had  a  peculiar  and  melancholy 
interest,  so  that  a  group  of  wax  figures  representing 
the  scene,  attracted  crowds  in  almost  every  city  of 
the  Union. 

The  second  son,  William,  rose  to  the  rank  of  colo- 
nel in  the  revolutionary  war,  throughout  which  he 
served.  When  the  army  of  the  confederacy  was  so 
reduced,  that  many  of  the  officers  were  without 
commands,  they  organized  themselves  into  a  corps 
and  offered  to  serve  as  privates.  The  scheme  was 
patriotic,  but  would  have  introduced  great  difficul- 
ties in  the  discipline  of  the  army,  and  General  Wash- 
ington, though  he  complimented  their  devotion, 
was  too  prudent  to  accept  their  offer.  Of  all  the 
family  he  was  the  pride,  and  is  said  to  have  been 
one  of  the  coolest  men  in  the  army  in  defence,  and 
most  headlong  in  attack.  • 

The  third  son,  Thomas,  in  1776,  was  a  student 
of  law  in  the  office  of  Judge  Wilson,  but  at  the  call 
of  his  country,  abandoned  his  studies,  and  entered 
the  army  as  a  subaltern.  He  soon  became  a  cap- 
tain, and  at  the  end  of  the  war  held  that  grade.  He 
was  at  every  battle  in  the  middle  States,  and  at 
Brandywine  his  services  were  so  brilliant  that  Ge- 
neral Washington,  through  his  aid.  Colonel  Hamil- 
ton, thanked  him  at  the  head  of  the  army  for  rally- 
ing a  body  of  retreating  troops,  and  giving  the 
enemy  a  heavy  fire.  At  Monmouth  he  received  the 
same  compliment  from  General  Wayne,  for  defend- 
ing a  defile  attacked  by  the  British,  while  the  regi- 
ment of  his  brother.  Colonel  Richard  Butler,  made 
good  its  retreat.  Disbanded  at  the  end  of  the  war, 
he  married,  and  devoted  himself  to  agricultural  pur- 
suits until  1791,  when  he  commanded  a  battalion 
of  the  division  of  his  elder  brother,  Richard.  Though 
his  leg  was  broken  by  a  rifle  ball,  he  led  his  regi- 
ment in  the  last  forlorn  charge  of  General  St.  Clair, 
and  was  with  difficulty  taken  from  the  field  by  his 


MAJOR-GENERAL     BUTLER. 


167 


•ally- 
the 
the 

*end- 


war, 
pur- 
alion 
ough 
regi- 
lair, 
y  his 


brother  Edward.  He  was  retained  in  service  in 
1792  as  a  major,  and  two  years  after  became  a  lieu- 
tenant-colonel. During  the  whiskey  rebellion,  he 
commanded  the  post  of  fort  Fayette,  and  with  great 
difficulty  preserved  it  from  the  insurgents,  who, 
doubtless,  from  their  superiority  of  numoers  would 
have  captured  it,  had  they  not  been  deferred  by 
their  respect  for  the  veteran  commandant. 

Major-General  Wilkinson  seems  to  have  had  the 
faculty  of  embroiling  himself  with  all  who  really 
were  soldiers.  Evidences  of  this  are  his  disputes 
11  with  Scott  and  Gaines  and  others,  in  each  of  which 

he  was  manifestly  and  clearly  proven  at  fault. 
Colonel  Edward  Butler  also  attracted  his  attention, 
and  in  1803  was  arrested  by  him  and  sent  from  fort 
Adams  on  the  Mississippi  to  Maryland,  and  tried  on 
a  series  of  charges.  Of  all  of  these,  Colonel  Butler 
was  acquitted  except  of  one,  which  alleged  that  he 
wore  his  hair,  the  old  soldier  adhering  most  pertina- 
ciously to  the  queue  of  the  revolutionary  army,  in- 
stead of  adopting  the  State  prison  crop,  then  de- 
clared, by  orders,  the  uniform  of  the  army.  Wil- 
kinson being  in  command  of  New  Orleans,  whither 
Colonel  Butler  was  ordered,  to  assume  command  of 
the  city,  during  the  next  month  again  arrested  him. 
Before  however  the  sentence  of  the  court,  which 
met  in  Ji<ly  of  the  next  year,  transpired,  ('olonel 
BuUer  died,  and  the  sentence  has  never  become 
known.  The  hitter  persecution  of  this  veteran  sol- 
dier, inspired  Washington  Irving  with  the  pungent 
sa'iire  of  Wilkinson,  whose  character  he  described 
uuder  the  name  of  General  Van  Poppcnburg  in 
Knickerbocker's  History  of  New  York. 

Percival  Butler,  tho  fourth  son.  and  fiitlior  of  Gen- 
eral William  O.  Butler,  was  born  at  (.'iuiisle,  in 
Pennsylvania;  he  was  a  soldiir,  havi  ig  pfit<3red  the 
service  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  and  foujjht  at  Mon- 
mouth and  Yorktown.  He  shared  in  the  hardships 
of  Valley  Forge,  and  participated  in  all  the  scenes 


168 


LIFE     OF 


of  the  war  in  the  middle  States,  under  General 
Washington,  except  for  a  brief  time,  when  he  was 
altaclied  to  I.afayette's  light  corps.  At  the  ratifi- 
cation of  peace,  he  was  in  the  south  with  the  Penn- 
sylvania brigade.  In  1784,  he  emigrated  to  Ken- 
tucky, and  when  the  war  of  181'2  began  he  was 
alive.  He  had  been  Adjutant-General  of  Kentucky, 
and  in  that  capacity  served  in  one  of  the  many  ex- 
peditions sent  out  against  the  enemy. 

Edward  Butler  entered  the  army  at  the  close  of 
the  war,  and  was  a  captain  at  the  defeat  of  St.  Clair, 
where  one  of  his  brothers  died,  and  where  he  had 
the  proud  satisfaction  of  preserving  the  life  of  an- 
other, lie  was  ultimately  the  Adjutant-General  of 
Wayne's  victorious  army. 

Of  this  band  of  brothers^  four  left  sons,  all  of 
whom,  with  one  exception,  as  stated  above,  entered 
the  military  service  of  the  United  Slates,  and  all 
maintained  their  father's  fame  unsullied.  Mr.  Blair 
thus  speaks  of  the  younger  members  of  the  family, 
in  his  memoir  of  the  present  General,  recently  pub- 
lished in  Graham's  Magazine: 

"  1st.  General  Richard  Butler's  son,  William,  died 
a  lieutenant  in  the  navy,  early  in  the  last  war.  His 
son.  Captain  James  Butler,  was  at  the  head  of  the 
Pittsburg  Blues,  which  company  he  commanded  in 
the  campaigns  of  the  Northwest,  and  was  particu- 
larly distinguished  in  the  battle  of  Massissinnawa. 

"2d.  Colonel  William  Butler,  also  of  the  revolu- 
tionary army,  had  two  sons,  one  died  in  the  navy, 
the  other  a  subaltern  in  Wayne's  army.  He  was  in 
the  battle  with  the  Indians  in  1794. 

"  3d.  Lieutenant-Colonel  Thomas  Butler,  of  the 
old  stock,  had  three  sons,  the  eldest  a  judge.  The 
second,  Colonel  llobert  Butler,  was  at  the  head  of 
General  Jackson's  staff  throughout  the  last  war. 
The  third,  William  E.  Butler,  also  served  in  the 
army  of  Gem^ral  Jackson. 

**4th.  Percival  Butler,  captain  in  the  revolution- 


MA  JOR-0!EN  BR  AI.    BUTLER. 


169 


ary  war,  and  Adjutant-General  of  Kentucky  during 
the  last  war,  liad  four  sons :  first,  Thomas,  who  was 
a  captain,  and  aid  to  General  Jackson  at  New  Or- 
leans. Next,  General  William  O.  Butler,  the  sub- 
ject of  this  notice.  Third,  Richard,  who  was  assist- 
ant adjutant-general  in  the  campaigns  of  the  war 
of  1812.  Percival  Butler,  the  youngest  son,  how  a 
distinguished  lawyer,  was  not  of  an  age  to  bear 
arms  in  the  last  war.  Of  this  second  generation  of 
the  Butlers,  there  are  nine  certainly,  and  probably 
more,  engaged  in  the  present  war." 

Such  was  the  family  of  the  Butlers,  essentially 
men  of  action,  and  happily  blending  the  peculiari- 
ties of  the  land  of  their  fathers  and  of  our  own, 
to  which,  by  birtK  or  at  the  price  of  their  blood, 
they  possessed  an  unimpeachable  right.  In  all  the 
contests  of  the  United  States,  whether  with  a  sav- 
age or  civilized  foe,  the  family  have  been  conspicu- 
ous, and  cast  around  the  name  of  the  present  Major 
General,  if  not  a  claim  on  his  countrymen,  at  least 
something  as  near  to  that,  as  the  nature  of  our 
democratic  institutions  will  admit  of.  When  the 
last  war  began,  William  O.  Butler  had  just  con- 
cluded his  course  of  studies  at  Transylvania  Upi- 
versity,  where  he  had  been  graduated  with  distinc- 
tion. When  the  news  of  the  surrender  of  Hull's 
army  reached  Kentucky,  the  whole  State  was 
aroused,  and  among  the  first  to  volunteer  was  our 
hero.  Abandoning  at  once  all  the  allurements  of 
society,  he  enlisted  at  Lexington  as  a  private  in  the 
company  of  Captain  Hart,  thus  entering  the  service 
in  which  he  was  destined  to  occupy  the  highest  rank 
in  the  humblest.  Before  the  army  commenced  its 
march,  he  was  elected  a  corporal,  and  in  this  grade 
marched  to  the  relief  of  fort  Wayne,  then  invested 
by  the  hostile  Indians.  The  Kentucky  volunteers, 
it  is  well  known,  drove  the  enemy  before  them  to 
their  own  towns  on  the  Wabash,  and  thence  return  ■ 
ed  to  a  winter  cantonment  on  the  Miami  of  the  lakes 

n 


170 


LIFB    OV 


At  this  place  he  was  offered  a  commission  in  the  se- 
cond regiment  United  States  infantry  which  he  de- 
clined, unless  allowed  to  remain  on  the  frontier. 
His  wish  was  acceded  to,  and  he  was  appointed  in- 
slead  of  the  second,  into  the  seventeenth,  foot,  then 
a  portion  of  General  Winchester's  army.  Nothing 
could  exceed  the  uncomfortable  condition  and  i)ri- 
vation  of  the  volunteers  in  their  winter  quarters, 
where  they  waited  in  vain  for  supplies  and  rein- 
forcements ;  at  last,  wearied  out,  the  Kentucky  vol- 
unteers of  Colonels  Lewis,  Allen,  and  Major  Madi- 
son, and  three  companies,  the  seventeenth  infantry 
advanced  to  attack  the  allied  British  and  Indian 
army  which  defended  Detroit.  This  was  incum- 
bent on  the  volunteers  from  the  anticipations  formed 
of  them  at  home,  and  the  confident  hope  that  the 
disgrace  of  Hull's  surrender  would  be  wiped  out. 
General  Winchester  gave  them  distinct  orders  to 
go  no  further  than  Presque  Isle  up'iI  they  should  be 
reinforced  by  the  main  body.  laving  reached 
Presque  Isle  they  heard  that  a  party  of  British  and 
Indians  had  occupied  Frcnchtown,  which  they  de- 
termined at  once  to  attack.  The  right  wing  of  the 
attacking  force  was  commanded  by  Colonel  Allen ; 
Major  Graves  had  the  centre,  and  Madison  the  left. 
When  near  the  town  the  column  deployed  and  ad- 
vanced under  a  heavy  fire  of  howitzers  and  mus- 
ketry. Graves  and  Madison,  by  a  rapid  charge, 
drove  the  enemy  from  their  shelter  in  the  houses, 
and  behind  the  picket-work,  forcing  them  into  the 
woods.  Allen,  in  his  part  of  the  field,  was  equally 
fortunate,  but  was  forced  to  fight  his  enemy  again 
in  the  wood.     Here  too  he  was  successful. 

The  enemy  attempted  to  retake  their  position  by 
a  charge,  but  failed  and  fled.  They  were  pursued 
several  miles,  and  finally  dispersed.  The  American 
loss  was  twelve  killed  and  forty-five  wounded.  Of 
the  Indians  alone,  twelve  were  left  dead  on  the 
field.         .  , 


M A  JO R • U ENER A L     BUTLER. 


171 


In  this  battle,  .sign  Butler  distinguished  him- 
self; advancing  to  the  attack  witii  tin;  wing  coin- 
mnnded  by  Major  Madison,  a  strong  party  of  In- 
dians were  discovered  advancing  to  seize  a  fence 
and  hold  it  as  a  cover.  Calling  to  a  few  men  around 
him  he  ran  directly  to  oppose  them,  and  succeeded 
in  occupying  and  maintaining  the  position  against 
a  far  more  numerous  party.  During  the  action  he 
was  yet  again  remarkable,  having  brought  off  and 
saved  a  wounded  man,  who,  otherwise,  during  the 
alternations  of  the  day,  must  have  fallen  into  the 
hands  of  the  enemy.  This  occurred  on  the  18th  of 
January,  and  the  volunteers  immediately  encamped 
and  waited  for  General  Winchester,  who  with  the 
rest  of  the  army  arrived  on  the  20th.  The  whole 
force    now   assembled    was   nearly  eight    hundred 


strong. 


On  the  22d  of  January,  Winchester  had  placed 
within  his  pickets  six  hundred  men,  and  kept  the 
rest  encamped  in  an  open  field  on  the  other  side  of 
the  river.  On  the  morning  of  that  day.  Proctor, 
Split  Log  and  Round  Head,  at  the  head  of  a 
combined  force,  British  and  Indian  of  fifteen  hun- 
dred men,  attacked  the  position  with  a  heavy  fire 
of  musketry  and  six  cannon,  against  the  latter  of 
which,  the  pickets  were  no  defence.  The  body  of 
men  beyond  the  river  were  at  once  overj)ovvered 
and  attempted  to  cross  the  river.  Two  companies 
within  the  fort  discovering  the  distress  of  their  com- 
rades sallied  to  their  relief,  but  with  them  were 
forced  to  retreat.  All  of  these  men  were  either 
killed  or  forced  to  surrender  on  the  British  promise 
of  protection.  The  other  wing  (the  left)  made  a 
steady  defence  and  beat  back  three  assaults  of  the 
British  forty-first  foot,  which  lost  thirty-five  killed 
and  one  hundred  wounded.  Great  efforts  had  been 
made,  but  in  vain,  by  Winchester  and  Lewis,  to 
rally  the  right  wing  which  had  been  beyond  the 
river,  but  unfortunately  in  this  attempt  both  of 


172 


LIFB     OF 


these  officers  were  captured.  The  army  yet  con- 
tinued to  fight  and  repulsed  every  assault  of  the 
enemy  until  eleven  o'clock,  when  Hnding  resistance 
in  vain,  on  Proctor's  pledging  himself  to  the  gene- 
ral, that  he  would  protect  them  if  they  surrendered, 
which  otherwise  would  be  out  of  his  power,  the  ge- 
neral sent  a  fkig  to  the  pickets,  by  means  of  which, 
after  passing  and  re-passing  three  times,  a  surren- 
der was  negotiated ;  at  that  time,  thirty-five  com- 
missioned officers,  and  four  hundred  and  fifty  en- 
listed men  remained,  after  fighting  six  hours  against 
artillery,  surrounded  by  a  thousand  savages.  At 
this  time  the  killed,  wounded  and  missing,  including 
those  that  had  been  outside  the  pickets,  amounted 
to  more  than  three  hundred.  The  loss  of  the  Bri- 
tish could  not  have  been  less. 

The  consequences  of  this  sad  affair  are  too  well 
known.  Proctor  violated  every  pledge  he  had  giv- 
en; the  survivors  were  not  permitted  to  bury  the 
dead,  and  a  large  portion  of  themselves  were  mur- 
dered in  cold  blood,  by  the  Indians,  while  a  British 
Colonel,  at  the  head  of  an  ample  force,  stood  by  and 
did  not  strike  one  blow,  or  make  any  effort  to  save 
them.  Mr.  Blair  tells  the  following  anecdote  of 
Ensign  Butler,  in  this  battle,  which,  as  it  does  not 
enter  into  the  general  history  of  the  country,  had 
best  be  told  in  his  own  words : 

"  After  the  rout  and  massacre  of  the  right  wing, 
belonging  to  Wells's  command,  the  whole  force  of 
the  British  and  Indians  was  concentrated  against  the 
small  body  of  troops  under  Major  Madison,  that 
maintained  their  ground  within  the  picketed  gar- 
dens. A  double  barn,  commanding  the  plot  of 
ground  on  which  the  Kentuckians  stood,  was  ap- 
proached on  one  side  by  the  Indians,  under  the  cover 
of  an  orchard  and  fence ;  the  British,  on  the  other 
side,  being  so  posted  as  to  command  the  space  be- 
tween it  and  the  pickets.  A  party  in  the  rear  of 
the  barn  were  discovered  advancing  to  take  possea- 


M  A  J  OR-O  E  N  E  R  A  L     BUTLER. 


173 


con- 
r  the 
ancc 
genc- 
ered, 
ege- 
hicl), 
rren- 
coin- 
ly  en- 

.  At 
uding 
^unled 
e  Bri- 

0  well 
d  giv- 
ry  the 
J  mur- 
British 
jy  and 
0  save 
>te  of 
yes  not 
y,  had 

wing, 
ce  of 
nst  the 
that 
gar- 
ot  of 
'as  ap- 
e  cover 
other 
ce  be- 
ear  of 
possea- 


id 


sioii  of  it.  All  saw  the  fatal  consequences  of  the 
Hccure  lodgment  of  the  enemy  at  a  place  which 
would  present  every  man  within  the  pickets  at  close 
rifle-shot  to  the  aim  of  their  marksmen.  Major 
Madison  inquired  if  there  was  no  one  who  would 
volunteer  to  run  the  gauntlet  of  the  fire  of  the  Bri- 
tish and  Indian  lines,  and  put  a  torch  to  the  com- 
bustibles within  the  barn,  to  save  the  remnant  of 
the  little  army  from  the  sacrifice.  Butler,  without 
a  moment's  delay,  took  some  blazing  sticks  from  a 
fire  at  hand,  leaped  the  pickets,  and,  running  at  his 
utmost  speed,  thrust  the  fire  into  the  straw  within 
the  barn.  One  who  was  an  anxious  sfKjctator  of 
the  event  we  narrate,  says,  *  that  although  volley 
upon  volley  was  fired  at  him,  Butlor,  after  making 
some  steps  on  his  way  back,  turnc^d  to  see  if  the  fire 
had  taken,  and,  not  being  satisfied,  returned  to  the 
barn,  and  set  it  in  a  blaze.  As  the  conflagration 
grew,  the  enemy  was  seen  retreating  from  the  rear 
of  the  building,  which  they  had  entered  at  one  end, 
as  the  flame  ascended  in  the  other.  Soon  after 
reaching  the  pickets  in  safety,  amid  the  shouts  of 
his  friends,  he  was  struck  by  a  ball  in  his  breast. 
Believing,  from  the  pain  he  felt,  that  it  had  pene- 
trated his  chest,  turning  to  Adjutant  (now  General) 
McCalla,  one  of  his  Lexington  comrades,  and  press- 
ing his  hand  to  the  spot,  he  said, '  I  fear  this  shot  is 
mortal,  but  while  I  am  able  to  move,  I  will  do  my 
duty.'  To  the  anxious  inquiries  of  this  friend,  who 
met  him  soon  afterward,  he  opened  his  vest,  with  a . 
smile,  and  showed  him  that  the  ball  had  spent  itself 
on  the  thick  wadding  of  his  coat,  and  on  his  breast 
bone.     He  suflTered,  nowever,  for  many  weeks.'  " 

Among  the  few  who  survived  the  massacre  was 
Butler,  who  was  marched  on  foot  to  Fort  Niagara, 
where  he  remained  for  a  long  time,  amusing  him- 
self by  literary  pursuits  and  studies.  Much  of  his 
time  was  given  up  to  poetry;  and  his  verses,  though 
never  intended  to  be  published,  from  the  various 
15* 


174 


I»IFE     OF 


extracts  recently  printed,  since  all  that  relates  to 
him  has  become  of  interest,  possess  unusual  merit, 
when  we  remember  his  age  when  they  were  writ- 
ten. 

After  a  sojourn  in  Canada,  he  was  permitted  to 
return  to  the  United  States  on  parole,  and  almost 
immediately  was  promoted  to  a  captaincy  in  the  re- 
giment to  which  he  belonged.  As  this  gave  great 
dissatisfaction  in  the  corps,  all  the  lieutenants  of 
which  were  overslaughed,  he  was  almost  immedi- 
ately transferred  to  the  44th,  a  new  regiment. 
When  free  from  his  parole,  by  virtue  of  an  exchange, 
he  at  onci  took  the  field,  with  a  company  recruited 
at  Nashville,  Tennessee,  and  marched  to  join  General 
Jackson  alone,  before  any  other  portion  of  the  re- 
giment was  fully  organized.  General  Call,  then  a 
subaltern  of  Captain  Butler,  thus  describes  the  par- 
ticipation of  his  superior  officer  in  the  campaign  — 
a  more  vivid  and  graphic  sketch  can  scarcely  be 
found : 

Tallahasse,  April  3,  1844. 

"Sir  —  I  avail  myself  of  the  earliest  leisure  I 
have  had  since  the  receipt  of  your  letter  of  the  18th 
of  February,  to  give  you  a  reply. 

"  A  difference  of  political  sei'timents  will  not  in- 
duce me  to  withhold  the  narrative  you  have  re- 
quested, of  the  military  services  of  Culonel  William 
O.  Butler,  during  the  late  war  with  Great  Britain, 
while  attached  to  the  army  of  the  South.  My  inti- 
mate association  with  him,  in  camp,  on  the  march, 
and  in  the  fieU,  has  perhaps  made  me  as  well  ac- 
quainted with  his  merits,  as  a  gentleman  and  a  sol- 
dier, as  any  other  man  living.  And  although  we  are 
now  standing  in  opposite  ranks,  I  cannot  forget  the 
days  and  nights  we  have  stood  side  by  side,  facing 
the  common  enemy  of  our  country,  sharing  the  same 
fatigues,  dangers,  and  privations,  and  participating 
in  the  same  pleasures  and  enjoyments.     The  feel 


M A JOR-O BNER AL     BUTLER. 


175 


ings  and  sympathies  springing  from  such  associa- 
tions, in  the  daysof  o«r  youth,  can  never  be  remov- 
ed or  impaired  by  a  difference  of  opinion  with  regard 
to  men  or  measures,  when  each  may  well  believe 
the  other  equally  sincere  as  himself,  and  where  the 
most  ardent  desire  of  both  is  to  sustain  the  honour, 
the  happiness,  and  prosperity  of  our  country. 

**  Soon  after  my  appointment  in  the  army  of  the 
United  States,  as  a  lieutenant,  in  the  fall  of  1814,  I 
was  ordered  to  join  the  company  of  Captain  Butler, 
of  the  44th  regiment  of  infantry,  then  at  Nashville, 
Tennessee.  When  I  arrived,  and  reported  myself, 
I  found  the  company  under  orders  t.>  join  our  regi- 
ment in  the  South.  The  march,  mostly  through  an 
unsettled  wilderness,  wp.r  conducted  by  Captain 
Butler  with  his  usual  promptitude  and  energy,  and 
by  forced  and  rapid  movements,  we  arrived  at  Fort 
Montgomery,  the  head-quarters  of  General  Jackson, 
a  short  distance  above  the  Floriua  line,  just  in  time 
to  follow  our  beloved  general  in  his  bold  enterprise 
to  drive  the  enemy  from  his  strong  position  in  a  neu- 
tral territory.  The  van-guard  of  the  army  destined 
for  the  invasion  of  Louisiana,  had  made  Pensacola 
its  head-quarters,  and  the  British  navy  in  the 
(lulf  of  Mexico,  had  rendezvoused  in  that  beautiful 
bay. 

"  The  penetrating  sagacity  of  General  Jackson 
discovered  the  advantage  of  the  position  assumed  by 
the  British  forces,  and  with  a  decision  and  energy 
which  never  faltered,  he  resolved  to  find  his  enemy, 
even  under  the  flag  of  a  neutral  {X)wer.  This  was 
done  by  a  prompt  and  rapid  march,  surprising  and 
cutting  off  nil  the  advanced  pickets,  until  we  arrived 
within  gun-shot  of  the  fort  at  Pensacola.  The  army 
of  General  Jackson  was  then  so  inconsiderable  as  to 
render  a  r.'inforcement  of  a  single  company,  com- 
manded by  such  an  officer  as  (Captain  Butler,  an  im- 
portant acquisition.  And  although  there  were  sev' 
eral  companies  of  regular  troops  ordered  to  march 


176 


LIFE    OF 


from  Tennessee  at'the  same  time,  Captain  Butler's, 
by  his  extraordinary  energy  and  promptitude,  was 
the  only  one  which  arrived  in  time  to  join  this  ex- 
pedition. Hi3  company  formed  a  part  of  the  centre 
column  of  attack  at  Pensacola.  The  street  we  en- 
tered was  defended  by  a  battery  in  front,  which 
fired  on  us  incessantly,  while  several  strong  block- 
houses, on  our  flanks,  discharged  upon  us  small  arms 
and  artillery.  But  a  gallant  and  rapid  charge  soon 
carried  the  guns  in  front,  and  the  town  immediately 
surrendered. 

"  In  this  fight  Captain  Butler  led  on  his  company 
with  his  usual  intrepidity.  He  had  one  officer, 
Lieutenant  Flournoy,  severely  wounded,  and  seve- 
ral non-commissioned  officers  and  privates  killed  and 
wounded. 

"  From  Pensacola,  after  the  object  of  the  expedi- 
tion was  completed,  by  another  prompt  and  rapid 
movement,  we  arrived  at  New  Orleans  a  few  weeks 
before  the  appearance  of  the  enemy. 

"On  the  23d  of  December  the  signal-^im  an- 
nounced the  approach  of  the  enemy.  The  previous 
night  they  had  surprised  and  captured  one  of  our 
pickets;  had  ascended  a  bayou,  disembarked,  and 
had  taken  possession  of  the  left  bank  of  th(>  Missis- 
sippi, within  six  miles  of  New  Orleans.  The  energy 
of  every  officer  was  put  in  requisition,  to  concentrate 
our  forces  in  time  to  meet  the  enemy.  Captain 
Butler  was  one  of  the  first  to  arrive  at  the  general's 
quarters,  and  ask  instructions;  they  were  received 
and  promptly  executed.  Our  regiment,  stationed 
on  the  opposite  side,  was  transportod  across  the 
river.  All  the  available  forces  of  our  army,  not 
much  exceeding  fifteen  hundred  men,  were  concen- 
trated in  the  city  ;  and  while  the  sun  went  down  the 
line  of  battle  was  formed  ;  and  every  officer  took  the 
station  assigned  him  in  the  fight.  The  infantry 
formed  on  the  open  square,  in  front  of  the  cathedral, 
waiting   in    anxious   rxj>netntion   for   the  order   to 


MAJOU-G£NERAL     BUTLER. 


177 


move.  During  this  momentary  pause,  while  the 
enemy  was  exf)ected  to  enter  ihe  city,  a  scene  of 
deep  and  thrilling  interest  was  presented.  Every 
gallery,  porch  and  window  around  the  square  were 
filled  with  the  fair  forms  of  beauty,  in  silent  anxiety 
and  alarm,  waving  their  handkerchiefs  to  the  gal- 
lant and  devoted  band  which  stood  before  them, 
p-f-epared  to  die,  or  defend  them  from  the  rude  intru- 
sion of  a  foreign  soldiery.  It  was  a  scene  calcu- 
lated to  awaken  emotions  never  to  be  forgotten.  It 
appealed  to  the  chivalry  and  patriotism  of  every 
ofBcer  and  soldier — it  inspired  every  heart,  and 
nerved  every  arm  for  battle.  From  this  impressive 
scene  the  army  marched  to  meet  the  enemy,  and 
about  eight  o'clock  at  night  they  were  surprised  in 
their  encampment,  immediately  on  the  banks  of  the 
Mississippi.  Undiscovered,  our  line  was  formed  in 
silence  within  a  short  distance  of  the  enemy ;  a  ra- 
pid charge  was  made  into  their  camp,  and  a  despe- 
rate conflict  ensued.  After  a  determined  resistance 
the  enemy  gave  way,  but  disputing  every  inch  of 
ground  we  gained.  In  advancing  over  ditches  and 
fences  in  the  night,  rendered  still  more  dark  by  the 
smoke  of  the  battle,  much  confusion  niicessarily  en- 
sued, and  many  officers  became  separated  from  their 
commands.  It  more  than  once  occurred  during  the 
fight  that  some  of  our  officers,  through  mistake,  en- 
tered the  enemy's  lines;  and  the  British  otficcrs  in 
like  manner  entered  ours.  The  meritorious  officer 
in  command  of  our  regiment,  at  the  commencement 
of  the  battle,  lost  his  position  in  the  darkness  and 
confiision,  and  was  unable  to  regain  it  until  the  ac- 
tion was  over.  In  this  manner,  for  a  short  time,  the 
regiment  was  without  a  commander,  and  its  niove- 
ments  were  regulated  by  the  platoon  oflicers,  which 
increased  the  confusion  and  irregularity  of  the  ad- 
vance. In  this  critical  situation,  and  in  the  l»eat  of 
the  l);ittle,  Captain  Biiller,  as  the  senior  officer  f>re- 
sent,  assumed  coimuand  of  the  regiment,  and  led  it 


178 


LIFE    OF 


on  most  gallantly  to  repeated  and  successful  cliarges, 
I  ntil  tlie  fight  ended  in  the  complete  rout  of  the 
enemy.  We  were  still  pressing  on  their  rear,  when 
an  ofliccr  of  the  general's  staff  rode  up  and  ordered 
the  pursuit  discontinued.  Captain  Butler  urged  its 
continuance,  and  expressed  the  confident  belief  of 
his  ability  to  take  many  prisoners,  if  permitted  to 
advance.  But  the  order  was  promptly  repeated, 
under  the  well-founded  apprehension  that  our  troops 
might  come  into  collision  with  each  other,  an  event 
which  had  unhappily  occurred  at  a  previous  hour 
of  the  fight.  No  corps  on  that  field  was  more 
bravely  led  to  battle  than  the  regiment  commanded 
by  Captain  Butler,  and  no  officer  of  any  rank,  save 
the  commander-in-chief,  was  entitled  to  higher  cre- 
dit for  the  achievement  of  that  glorious  night. 

**  A  short  time  before  the  battle  of  the  8th  of 
January,  Captain  Butler  was  detailed  to  command 
the  guard  in  front  of  the  encampment'.  A  house 
standing  near  the  bridge,  in  advance  of  his  position, 
had  been  taken  possession  of  by  the  light  troops  of 
the  enemy,  from  whence  they  annoyed  our  guard. 
Captain  Butler  determined  to  dislodge  them  and 
burn  the  house.  He  accordingly  marched  to  the 
attack  at  the  head  of  his  command,  but  the  enemy 
retired  before  him.  Seeing  them  retreat,  he  halted 
his  guard,  and  advanced  himself,  accompanied  by 
two  or  three  men  only,  for  the  purpose  of  burning 
the  house.  It  was  an  old  frame  building,  weather- 
boarded,  without  ceiling  or  plaster  in  the  inside, 
with  a  single  door  opening  to  the  British  ca'np.  On 
entering  the  house  he  found  a  soldier  of  the  enemy 
concealed  in  one  corner,  whom  he  captured,  and 
sent  to  the  rear  with  his  men,  remaining  alone  in 
the  house.  While  he  was  in  the  act  of  kin<lling  a 
fire,  a  detachment  of  the  enemy,  unporcrived,  occu- 
pied the  only  door.  The  first  in\pu!se  was  to  lUrre, 
with  liis  single  arm,  a  passage  throuuh  ihem,  but  he 
was  instantly  seized  in  a  violent  manner  by  two  of 


MAJOR-GENERAL     BUTLER. 


179 


by 


three  stout  fellows,  who  pushed  him  back  against 
the  wall  with  such  force  as  to  burst  off  the  weather- 
boarding  from  the  wall,  and  he  fell  through  the 
opening  thus  made.  In  an  instant  Tie  recovered 
himself,  and  under  a  heavy  fire  from  the  enemy,  he 
retreated  until  supported  by  the  guard,  whicli  he 
immediately  led  on  to  the  attack,  drove  the  British 
light  troops  from  their  strong  position,  and  burnt 
the  house  in  the  presence  of  the  two  armies. 

"  1  witnessed  on  that  field  many  deeds  of  daring 
courage,  but  none  of  which  more  excited  my  admi- 
ration than  this. 

"  Captain  Butler  was  soon  after  in  the  battle  of 
the  8th  of  January,  where  he  sustained  his  pre- 
viously high  and  well  earned  reputation  for  bravery 
and  usefulness.  But  that  battle,  which,'  from  its 
important  results,  has  eclipsed  those  which  preceded 
it,  was  but  a  slaughter  of  the  enemy,  with  trivial 
loss  on  our  part,  and  presenting  few  instances  of  in- 
dividual distinction. 

"  Captain  Butler  received  the  brevet  rank  of  ma- 
jor for  his  gallant  services  during  that  eventful 
campaign,  and  the  reward  of  merit  was  never  more 
worthily  bestowed.  Soon  after  the  close  of  the  war, 
he  was  appointed  aid-de-camp  to  General  Jackson, 
in  which  station  he  remained  until  he  retired  from 
the  army.  Since  that  period  I  have  seldom  had  the 
pleasure  of  meeting  with  my  valued  friend  and  cora- 
i>anion  in  arms,  and  I  know  but  little  of  his  career 
in  civil  life.  But  in  camp,  his  elevated  principles, 
his  intelligence  and  generous  feelings,  won  for  him 
the  respect  and  confidence  of  all  who  knew  him; 
and  where  he  is  best  known,  I  will  venture  to  say, 
he  is  still  most  highly  appreriate<'  for  every  attri- 
bute V  '  "ch  constitutes  the  gentleman  and  the  sol- 
dier. 

°    ♦*  I  am,  sir,  very  respectfuMy, 

"  R.  K.  CALL. 

"  Mr  William  Tanner." 


iV^ 


180 


LIFE    OF 


General  Jackson  was  also  about  this  time  appeal- 
ed to,  and  wrote  an  energetic  letter  in  reference  to 
his  old  aid-de-camp,  which,  while  it  displays  the 
high  estimate  placed  by  the  great  commander  on 
his  younger  associate,  is  too  significant  of  the  pecu- 
liarities of  General  Jackson,  not  to  be  a  matter  of 
interest.  We  take  it  from  the  sketch  of  Mr.  Blair, 
who  from  family  and  political  association,  had  am- 
ple means  to  prepare  a  far  more  elaborate  life  of 
General  Butler  than  he  has  done. 


"  Hermitage,  Feb.  20,  1844. 

**  My  Dear  Sir  : — You  ask  me  to  give  you  my 
opinion  of  the  military  services  of  the  then  Captain, 
now  Colonel,  William  O.  Butler,  of  Kentucky,  dur- 
ing the  investment  of  New  Orleans  by  the  British 
forces  in  1814  and  1815.  I  wish  I  had  sufficient 
strength  to  speak  fully  of  the  merit  of  the  services 
of  Colonel  Butler  on  that  occasion ;  this  strength  1 
have  not :  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  on  all  occasions  he 
displayed  that  heroic  chivalry,  and  calmness  of 
judgment  in  the  midst  of  danger,  which  distinguish 
the  valuable  officer  in  the  hour  of  battle.  In  a  con- 
spicuous manner  were  those  noble  qualities  dis- 
played by  him  on  the  night  of  the  23d  of  December, 
1814,  and  on  the  8th  of  January,  1815,  as  well  as 
at  all  times  during  the  presence  of  the  British  army 
at  New  Orleans.  In  short,  he  was  to  be  found  at 
all  points  where  duty  called.  I  hazard  nothing  in 
saying  that  should  our  country  again  be  engaged  in 
war  during  the  active  age  of  Colonel  Butler,  he 
would  be  one  of  the  very  best  selections  that  could 
be  made  to  command  our  army,  and  lead  the  eagles 
of  our  country  on  to  victory  and  renown.  He  has 
sufficient  energy  to  assume  all  responsibility  neces- 
sary to  success,  and  for  his  country's  good. 

"ANDREW  JACKSON." 


MAJOR-GENERAL     BUTLER. 


181 


In  1816,  General  Jackson  gave  evidence  how 
highly  he  esteemed  Captain  Butler,  by  appointing 
him  aid-de'Campj  with  the  rank  of  colonel,  which 
position  he  retamed  in  the  peace-establishment. 

He,  however,  though  a  soldier,  had  no  preference 
for  the  military  profession  in  a  season  of  peace,  and 
several  year;*  before  General  Jackson  laid  down  his 
profession,  resigned,  and  immediately  resumed  the 
study  of  that  profession  which  had  been  inter- 
rupted by  the  declaration  of  war.  He  then  married 
and  established  himself  on  the  estate  of  his  father, 
at  the  point  where  the  Ohio  and  Kentucky  rivers 
meet.     Mr.  Blair  thus  describes  his  home : 

"  The  region  iround  him  was  wild  and  romantic, 
sparsely  settled,  and  by  pastoral  people.  There  are 
no  populous  towns.  The  high,  rolling,  and  yet  rich 
lands  —  the  precipitous  cliffs  of  the  Kentucky,  of 
Eagle,  Tavern,  and  other  tributaries,  which  pour 
into  it  near  the  mouth  —  make  this  section  of  the 
State  still,  to  some  extent,  a  wilderness  of  thickets 
—  and  the  tangled  pea-vine,  the  grape-vine,  and 
nut-bearing  trees,  which  rendered  all  Kentucky, 
until   the  intrusion  of  the  whites,  one  great  Indian 

Cark.  The  whole  luxuriant  domain  was  preserved 
y  the  Indians  as  a  pasture  for  buffalo,  deer,  elk, 
and  other  animals  —  their  enjoyment  alike  as  a  chase 
and  a  subsistence  —  by  excluding  every  tribe  from 
fixing  a  habitation  in  it.  Its  name  consecrated  it  as 
the  dark  and  bloody  ground;  and  war  pursued  every 
foot  that  trod  it.  In  the  midst  of  this  region,  in 
yVpril,  1791,  William  O.  Butler  was  born,  in  Jessa- 
mine county,  on  the  Kentucky  river.  His  father 
had  married,  in  Lexington,  soon  after  his  arrival  in 
Kentucky,  1782,  Miss  Howkins,  a  sister-in-law  of 
Colonel  Todd,  who  commanded  and  perished  in  the 
battle  of  the  Blue-Licks.  Following  the  instincts 
of  his  family,  which  seemed  ever  to  court  danger, 
General  Pierce  Butler,  as  neighborhood  encroached 
around  him,  removed,  net  long  after  the  birth  of  his 
16 


182 


LIFE     OP 


son  William,  to  the  mouth  of  the  Kentucky  river. 
Through  this  section  the  Indian  wur-path  into  the 
heart  of  Kentucky  passed.  Until  the  peace  of  1794, 
there  was  scarcely  a  day  that  some  hostile  savage 
did  not  prow!  through  the  tangled  forests,  and  the 
labyrinths  of  hills,  streams  and  cliffs,  which  adapted 
this  region  to  their  lurking  warfare.  From  it  they 
emerged  when  they  made  their  last  formidable  in- 
cursion, and  pushed  their  foray  to  the  environs  of 
Frankfort,  the  capital  of  the  State.  General  Pierce 
Butler  had  on  one  side  of  him  the  Ohio,  on  the  far- 
ther shore  of  which  the  savage  hordes  still  held  the 
mastery,  and  on  the  other  the  romantic  region 
through  which  they  hunted  and  pressed  their  war 
enterprises.  And  here,  amid  the  scenes  of  border 
warfare,  his  son  William  had  that  spirit,  which  has 
animated  him  through  life,  educated  by  the  legends 
of  the  Indian-fighting  hunters  of  Kentucky.** 

Amid  these  scenes  Colonel  Butler  lived,  and  found 
that  content  and  peace  of  mind,  surpassing  wealth, 
so  necessary  to  one  whose  youth  had  been  passed 
amid  the  alarums  of  a  frontier  war.  The  following 
verses,  written  at  that  time,  show  the  nature  of  Col. 
Butler*s  life,  and  demonstrate  how  utterly  the  sol- 
dier's sword  had  been  converted  into  the  pruning 
hook:  ; 


THE  BOAT  HORN. 

O,  boatman  !  wind  that  horn  again, 
For  never  did  the  listening  ear 
Upon  its  lambent  bosom  hear 

So  wild,  so  soft,  so  sweet  a  strain  — 

What  though  thy  notes  are  sad,  and  few, 
By  every  simple  boatman  blown, 

Yet  is  each  pulse  to  nature  true, 
And  mt^lody  in  every  tone. 

How  oft  in  boyhood's  joyous  day, 
Unmindful  of  the  lapsing  hours, 

I've  loitered  on  my  homeward  way 
By  wild  Ohio's  brink  of  flowers, 


MAJOR-GENERAL     BUTLER.  183 

While  8o:np  lone  hoHtman,  from  the  deck, 
'  Poured  his  soft  numbers  to  that  tide, 

<  As  if  to  charm  from  storm  and  wreck. 

The  boat  where  all  his  fortunes  ride ! 
Delighted  Nature  drank  the  sound, 
Enchanted  —  Echo  bore  it  round 
In  whispers  soft,  and  softer  still, 
From  hill  to  plain,  and  plain  to  hill, 
Till  e*en  the  thoughtless,  frolick  boy. 
Elate  with  hope,  and  wild  with  joy, 
Who  gambolled  by  the  river^s  side, 
And  sported  with  the  fretting  tide. 
Feels  something  new  pervade  his  breast. 
Chain  his  light  step,  repress  his  jest, 
Bends  o*er  the  flood  his  eager  ear. 
To  catch  the  sounds  far  on,  yet  dear  — 
Drinks  the  sweet  draught,  but  knows  not  why 
The  tear  of  rapture  fills  his  eye. 
And  can  he  now,  to  manhood  grown. 
Tell  why  those  notes,  simple  and  lone, 
As  on  the  ravished  ear  they  fall, 
Bind  every  sense  in  magic  spell  1 
There  is  a  tide  of  feeling  given 
To  all  on  earth,  its  fountain  Heaven. 
Beginning  with  the  dewy  flower. 
Just  oped  in  Flora's  vernal  bower  — 
Rising  creation's  orders  through. 
With  louder  murmur,  brighter  hue  — 
That  tide  is  sympathy  I  its  ebb  and  flew 
Give  life  its  hues  of  joy  and  wo. 
Music,  the  master-spirit  that  can  move 
Its  waves  to  war,  or  lull  theiu  into  love — 
Can  cheer  the  sinking  sailor  mid  the  wave. 
And  bid  the  soldier  on!  nor  fear  the  grave  — 
Inspire  the  fainting  pilgrim  on  his  road, 
And  elevate  his  soul  to  claim  his  God.    < 
Then,  boatman !  wind  that  horn  again! 
Though  much  of  sorrow  mark  its  strain, 
Yet  are  its  notes  to  sorrow  dear; 
What  though  they  wake  fond  memory's  tear ! 
Tears  are  sad  memory's  sacred  feast. 
And  rapture  oft  her  chosen  guest. 

In  the  west,  no  explanation  of  this  poem  is  needed, 
but  in  the  eastern  portions  of  the  country  its  refer- 
ence may  not  be  apparent.     It  has  relation  to  the 


184 


LiFB  or 


wild  boat-horn  of  wood,  like  that  of  the  Swiss  herd- 
men,  used  by  the  early  navigators  of  the  Ohio  and 
tilher  waters,  previous  to  the  commencement  of  the 
nge  of  steam  and  turmoil.  On  this  rude  instru- 
ment they  were  accustomed  to  utter  the  most  simple 
yet  the  most  touching  melodies,  the  tradition  of 
which  is  now  preserved  through  the  whole  west. 
Only,  however,  on  the  upper  Missouri  and  its  tribu- 
taries now  can  be  heard  those  strains,  in  which  were 
mingled  the  monotone  music  of  the  Indians  and  the 
^iuyer  rhythmof  France,  which  Ledyard  and  Moore 
thought  worthy  of  translation  and  imitation. 

This  may  not  be  an  improper  place  to  introduce 
u  few  selections  from  the  early  poems  of  Butler, 
generally  written  while  he  was  an  inmate  of  a  Bri- 
tish prison.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  massacre  of 
the  river  Raisin  made  a  deep  impression  on  him. 

THE  FIELD  OF  RAISIN. 

The  battle 's  o*er !  the  din  is  past. 

Night's  mantle  on  the  field  is  cast  | 

The  Indian  yell  is  heard  no  more, 

And  silence  broods  o'er  Erie's  shore. 

At  this  lone  hoar  1  go  to  tread 

The  field  where  valour  vainly  bled— 

To  raise  the  wounded  warrior's  crest, 

Or  warm  with  tears  his  icy  breast; 

To  treasure  up  his  last  command, 

And  bear  it  to  his  native  land. 

It  may  one  pulse  of  joy  impart 

To  a  fond  mother's  bleeding  heart; 

Or  for  a  moment  it  may  dry 

The  tear-drop  in  the  widow's  eye. 

Vain  hope,  away !    The  widow  ne'er 

Her  warrior's  dying  wish  shall  hear. 

The  passing  zephyr  bears  no  sigh, 

No  wounded  warrior  meets  the  eye-~ 

Death  is  his  sleep  by  Erie's  wave. 

Of  Raisin's  snow  we  heap  his  grave ! 

How  many  hopes  lie  murdered  here— 

The  mother's  joy,  the  father's  pride, 
'  The  country's  boast,  the  focman's  fear, 

'  -      •  In  wilder'd  havoc,  side  by  side. 


o 


M A JOR-OBN> R A L     BVTLBR. 


185 


Ltnd  me,  thou  silent  queen  of  night, 
Lend  me  awhile  thy  waning  light, 
That  I  may  see  e«ich  wel Moved  form, 
That  sunk  beneath  the  morning  storm. 

These  verses  are  introductory  to  a  larger  poem, 
which  is  a  series  of  eulogien  on  his  murdered  com- 
panions, belonging  to  the  company  of  Captain  Hart, 
himself  a  victim  of  Proctor's  massacre,  and  a  ne- 
phew of  two  distinguished  statesmen  of  Kentucky, 
Henry  Clay  and  James  Brown. 

And  here  I  see  that  youthful  band, 
That  loved  to  move  at  Hart's  command ; 
1  saw  them  for  the  battle  dressed, 
And  still  where  danger  thickest  pressed, 
I  marked  their  criiason  plumage  wave. 
How  many  filled  this  bloody  grave! 
Their  pillow  and  their  winding-sheet 
The  viri^in  snow — a  shroud  most  meet! 
Hut  wherefore  do  I  linger  here  1 
Why  drop  the  unavailing  tear  1 
Where'er  I  turn,  some  youthful  form. 
Like  floweret  broken  by  the  storm. 
Appeals  to  me  in  sad  array. 
And  bids  me  yet  a  moment  stay,         - 
Till  1    ould  fondly  lay  me  down 
And  sleep  with  him  on  the  cold,  cold  ground. 
For  thee,  thou  dread  and  solemn  plain, 
I  ne'er  shall  look  on  thee  again; 
And  Spring,  with  her  effaring  showers, 
Shall  come,  and  Summer';    'nantling  JP>wer8  ; 
And  each  succeeding  winUii    'irow  •' • 

On  thy  r^d  breast  new  robes  uf  snow; 
Yet  1  will  wear  thee  in  my  heart. 
All  dark  and  gory  as  thou  art. 

Amid  these  scenes  Colont'i  Butler  remained  for 
twenty  years  in  seclusion,  when  he  was  by  the 
unanimous  nomination  of  the  democracy  of  the  dis- 
trict in  which  he  resided,  selected  as  a  candidate  for 
Congress.  He  was  on  two  successive  terms  elected, 
and  would  doubtless  have  been  a  third  time  had  he  not 
positively  refused  'o  serve.  He  was  rarely  heard  ia 
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the  sessions  of  Congress,  but  several  noble  addresses 
delivered  there  by  him,  prove  that  there  was  more 
than  one  orator,  even  in  Kentucky. 

In  1844,  he  was  nominated  as  governor  of  Ken- 
tucky, and  a  great  writer,  who  has  made  politics 
his  study,  has  declared  th&<  ^here  is  but  little  doubt 
that  he  would  have  beer,  elected,  but  for  the  fad 
that  it  was  supposed  throughout  the  State  that  the 
non-election  of  Ouslcy,  tl.t:  whig  candidate,  would 
prove  most  injurious  to  the  chances  of  Mr.  Clay's 
nomination  by  the  creat  convention  of  the  Whig 
party.  Mr.  Clay,  it  is  wdl  known,  has  for  years 
been  the  popular  idol  of  his  State,  and  this  circum- 
stance, united  with  anxiety  to  give  a  chief  magis- 
trate to  the  Union,  caused  Colonel  Butler's  -lefeat. 
The  nomination  of  the  latter,  however,  cci  tainly 
diminished  the  whig  majority  from  twenty  thousand 
votes  to  five  thousand. 

On  the  election  of  Mr.  Polk,  there  was  a  general 
expectation  that  Colonel  Butler  would  have  been  ap- 
pointed secretary  at  war.  To  many  it  was  a  subject 
of  regret,  that  the  President  did  not  select  him,  who 
from  the  mingled  studies  of  his  career  in  camp  and 
at  the  bar,  was  so  well  calculated  for  this  post.  It 
is  perhaps,  however,  best  (or  the  democratic  party, 
that  this  was  not  the  case,  as  it  is  scarcely  proba- 
ble, that  in  that  event  he  would  now  have  been 
selected  as  the  candidate  of  the  democratic  party 
for  the  second  office  of  the  nation. 


'I«ft     I     '!l.  •^flSMf     •t'>-V*iJ<"    intJOhV'.*     ^,'iO"'<r'        '.^r:^     ''^mA 

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MAJOR-GENERAL     BUTLER. 


187 


frt 


CHAPTER  II. 

Appointment  aa  Major-General — Service  in  Mexico— Monterey 
— Wounded — Return  Home — Second  in  Command  in  Mexico 
— Return  of  General  Scott,  Commander-in-Chief. 

At  the  time  that  hostilities  were  commenced  be- 
tween  the  United  States  and  Mexico,  it  was  mani- 
fest that  the  regular  army  would  be  too  small  to 
occupy  that  warlike  republic,  in  which  the  stormy 
events  of  the  last  thirty  years  have  made  almost 
every  man  a  soldier.  The  government  at  once  de- 
termined to  appeal  to  the  patriotism  of  the  people, 
and  to  call  out  volunteers.  As  however  it  was 
known  that  this  class  of  troops  had  a  great  aver- 
sion to  serving  under  officers  of  the  regular  army, 
it  was  determined  to  apix>int  two  generals  of  divi- 
sion and  a  number  of  brigadiers,  from  civil  life,  to 
command  the  new  levies.  The  command  of  one  of 
the  divisions  was  conferred  on  General  Butler,  and 
met  with  universal  approbation,  being  the  only 
one  of  the  appointments  of  general  officers  by  Mr. 
Polk,  against  which  very  serious  objections  were 
not  urged.  General  Butler  was  entitled  to  this 
commission;  he  had  learned  a  soldier's  duty  in  the 
presence  of  the  enemy,  and  not  in  marching  militia 
about  the  streets  of  a  city,  and  therefore  his  promo- 
tion was  both  popular  among  the  people,  and  wel- 
come to  the  veterans  of  the  army,  with  whom  he 
was  to  serve. 

As  soon  as  his  troops  were  raised  he  hurried  to 
Mexico  to  support  General  Taylor  in  his  invasion. 
Inmied lately  on  the  advance  of  the  army.  General 
Butler  was  assigned  to  the  command  of  the  field  di- 
vision of  volunteers,  and  seems  to  have  acquired  in 


yj 


188 


LtFfl  or 


a  peculiar  manner  the  confidence  of  General  Tay- 
lor. The  circumstances  attending  the  advance  of 
the  army  are  well  known :  it  may  not  be  however 
improper  again  to  collate  in  this  place,  the  series  of 
official  reports,  which  refer  to  the  subject  of  this 
memoir. 

.  General  Taylor,  in  his  brief  report,  dated  Sep- 
tember 22,  1846,  announcing  the  capture  of  the  city 
of  Monterey,  took  occasion  to  refer  to  General  But- 
ler's conduct  in  the  most  .particular  manner,  and  in 
the  full  report,  dated  October  9th,  spoke  explicitly, 
regretting  that  his  wound,  received  on  the  21st  ult., 
deprived  him  of  his  valuable  services. 

The  following  is  General  Butler's  own  report : 
"  Pursuant  to  the  instructions  of  the  major-gene- 
ral commanding,  on  the  21st  instant,  at  about  eight 
o'clock,  A.  M.,  1  marched  my  division,  (with  the 
exception  of  one  company  from  each  infantry  regi- 
ment, left  to  guard  the  cnmp,)  and  placed  it  in  order 
of  battle,  under  cover,  immediately  in  rear  of  the 
mortar  and  howitzer  battery,  my  left  resting  on  the 
main  road  to  Monterey.  I  had  been  in  position  but 
a  short  time,  when  I  received  the  general's  further 
orders  to  move  as  speedily  as  practicable,  with  three 
regiments,  to  the  support  of  General  Twiggs*  divi- 
sion, then  engaged  in  an  attempt  to  carry  the  ene- 
my's first  battery  on  our  left.  To  expedite  this 
movement,  I  marched  the  three  nearest  regiments, 
commanded  respectively  by  Colonels  Davis,  Camp- 
bell, and  Mitchell,  by  the  left  flank,  leaving  Colonel 
Ormsby  to  sustain  the  batteries.  Finding  the  rifle 
regiment  in  front,  that  of  Colonel  Campbell  was  or- 
dered to  take  its  place.  The  two  last  mentioned 
regiments  constituting  General  Quitman's  field  bri- 
gade, he  took  the  immediate  command  of  them,  and 
moved  oft'  with  spirit  and  promptness  in  the  direc- 
tion indicated  by  the  enemy's  line  of  fire.  Having 
seen  General  Quitman's  brigade  fairly  in  motion,  I 
turned  my  attention  to  that  of  General  Hamer,now 


MA  JOR-OENBRAL     BUTLER. 


189 


the 


onel 
rifle 
s  or- 
oned 
bri- 
and 
1  ree- 
ving 
on»  I 
now 


consisting  of  the  Ohio  regiment  only.  Pursuing  the 
instructions  of  the  major-general,  I  felt  my  way  gra- 
dually, without  any  knowledge  of  the  localities,  into 
that  part  of  the  city  bordering  on  the  enemy's  con- 
tinuous line  of  batteries,  assailed  at  every  step  by 
heavy  fires  in  front  and  flank.  After  having  tra- 
versed several  squares,  I  met  Major  Mansfield,  the 
engineer  who  had  conducted  the  movement  of  Ge- 
neral Twiggs'  division  on  the  first  battery.  He  in- 
formed me  of  the  failure  of  that  attack,  and  advised 
the  withdrawal  of  my  command,  as  there  could  no 
longer  be  any  object  in  .idvancing  further,  warning 
me  at  the  same  time  that  if  I  advanced  I  must  meet 
a  fire  that  would  sweep  all  before  it.  Knowing  the 
major-general  commanding  to  be  but  a  short  dis- 
tance in  the  rear,  I  galloped  back  and  communicated 
this  information,  in  consequence  of  which  he  gave 
the  order  to  retrograde,  and  the  movement  was  com- 
menced accordingly.  In  a  short  ticne,  however,  it 
was  known  that  General  Quitman's  brigade  had  not 
only  stormed  the  battery  in  question,  but  had  also 
carried  a  stone  house  of  considerable  strength  con- 
nected with  the  first,  and  occupied  by  the  enemy's 
infantry.  The  direction  of  General  Hamer's  bri- 
gade was  at  once  changed,  and  the  city  re-entered 
by  another  route,  whicn,  after  abop.t  a  half  hour's 
march  under  a  destructive  fire,  brought  it  within, 
say  one  hundred  yards,  of  the  enemy's  second  fort, 
called  El  Diablo.  A  very  slight  reconnoissance  suf- 
ced  to  convince  me  that  this  was  a  position  of  no 
rdinary  strength.  Still,  feeling  its  importance, 
after  consulting  with  part  of  my  staflfas  to  its  prac- 
ticability, I  had  resolved  to  attempt  carrying  it  by 
storm,  and  was  in  the  act  of  directing  the  advance, 
when  I  received  a  wound  which  compelled  me  to 
halt.  Colonel  Mitchell  was  at  the  same  time  wound- 
ed at  the  head  of  his  regiment,  as  was  his  adjutant. 
The  men  were  falling  fast  under  the  converging  fire 
of  at  least  three  distinct  batteries,  tl^at  continually 


190 


LIFE    OF 


swept  the  intervening  space  through  which  it  was 
necessary  to  pass.  The  loss  of  blood,  too,  from  my 
wound,  rendered  it  necessary  that  I  should  quit  the 
field ;  and  I  had  discovered  at  a  second  glance  that 
the  position  was  covered  by  a  heavy  fire  of  mus- 
ketry from  other  works  directly  in  its  rear,  that  1 
had  not  seen  in  the  first  hasty  examination.  Under 
uU  these  discouragements,  I  was  most  reluctantly 
compelled,  on  surrendering  the  command,  to  advise 
the  withdrawal  of  the  troops  to  a  less  exposed  posi- 
tion. There  is  a  possibility  that  the  work  might 
have  been  carried,  but  not  without  excessive  loss, 
and  if  carried,  I  feel  assured  it  would  have  been  un- 
tenable. 

"  Accordingly,  the  division  under  General  Hamer, 
on  whom  devolved  the  command,  moved  to  a  new 
position  near  the  captured  fort,  and  within  sustain- 
ing distance  of  our  field  batteries  on  the  left.  The 
troops  remained  in  and  near  this  position,  and  under 
fire  of  the  enemy's  batteries,  until  late  in  the  day. 
For  the  details  of  the  after  proceedings  of  the  day, 
I  refer  to  General  Ilamer's  report. 

"  It  is  with  no  little  pride  and  gratification  that 
I  bear  testimony  of  the  gallantry  and  good  conduct 
of  my  command.  Were  proof  wanting,  a  mournful 
one  is  to  be  found  in  the  subjoined  return  of  the  ca- 
sualties of  the  day.  That  part  of  my  division  pro- 
perly in  the  field  did  not  exceed  eleven  hundred,  of 
which  number  full  one-fifth  were  either  killed  or 
wounded.  The  fact  that  troops  for  the  first  time 
under  fire  should  have  suffered  such  loss  without 
shrinking,  in  a  continuous  struggle  for  more  than 
two  hours,  and  mainly  against  a  sheltered  and  inac- 
cessible foe,  finds  but  few  parallels,  and  is  of  itself 
an  eulogium  to  which  I  need  not  add.  That  there 
were  some  more  prominent  for  skill  and  gallantry 
than  others,  even  in  a  contest  where  all  were  brave, 
there  can  be  no  doubt ;  and  I  leave  to  those  better 
qualified  from  Iheir  situations  than  myself  the  plea- 


MAJOR-OBNBRAL     BUTLER. 


191 


sing,  though  delicate  task,  of  reporting  upon  their 
respective  merits.  " 

"  Of  my  brigadiers,  however,  it  is  proper  that  1 
should  myself  speak.  General  Hamer  was  placed 
in  a  situation  where  nothing  brilliant  could  bo 
achieved,  but  which,  at  every  moment,  imperatively 
demanded  prudence  and  calm  unbending  courage. 
It  is  but  justice  to  him  to  say  that  I  found  him  equal 
to  the  emergency. 

"  General  Quitman  had  before  him  a  field  in  which 
military  genius  and  skill  were  called  into  requisition, 
and  honours  could  be  fairly  won,  and  I  but  echo  the 
general  voice  in  saying  that  he  nobly  availed  him- 
self of  the  occasion. 

"  My  special  thanks  are  due  to  Major  L.  Thomas, 
assistant  adjutant-general,  General  A.  Sidney  John- 
ston, of  Texas,  acting  inspector-general,  and  Lieu- 
tenant G.  W.  Lay,  aid-de-camp,  who  not  only  dis- 
played great  gallantry  and  coolness,  but,  by  their 
professional  skill,  activity,  and  energy,  rendered 
valuable  service  throughout  the  action.  After  my 
withdrawal  they  remained  with  the  troops  in  the 
field. 

"  Surgeon  R.  P.  Hunt,  my  volunteer  aid-dc-camp, 
also  evinced  great  coolness,  and  conveyed  promptly 
the  orders  confided  to  him. 

"  On  my  way  back  to  camp,  I  found  the  Ken- 
tucky regiment,  under  the  command  of  Colonel 
Ormsby,  drawn  up  in  fine  order  to  repel  a  threat- 
ened charge  from  a  large  body  of  Mexican  cavalry 
then  in  view.  Though  necessarily  kept  from  the 
field  of  action  proper,  they  occupied^a  most  impor- 
tant position,  and  had  two  men  wounded  in  defend- 
ing it. 

"  I  make  no  mention  of  the  movement  of  Captain 
Webster's  howitzer  battery,  which  was  withdrawn 
from  division  and  placed  under  charge  of  the  chief 
of  artillery."  "  •* 


m 


192 


LIFE    OF 


As  a  siipplement  to  the  above  report,  we  may  in- 
sert the  following  letter  written  to  a  relative  in 
Louisville,  which  has  become  important  as  showing 
how  fully  General  Butler  approved  of  the  granting 
of  the  peculiar  terms  to  the  Mexican  garrison  of 
Monterey,  to  which  so  much  objection  was  made  at 
the  time,  in  the  United  States. 

"  Monterey  is  ours,  but  not  without  a  heavy  loss, 
and  my  division  has  probably  sustained  more  than 
one  half  of  it.  I  am  myself  wounded,  but  not  badly. 
I  was  struck  by  a  musket-ball  below  the  knee ;  it 
entered  in  front,  grazed  the  bones  without  injunng 
them,  ranged  round  through  the  flesh,  and  came  out 
on  the  opposite  side. 

**  I  became  faint  from  loss  of  blood,  and  was  com- 
pelled to  leave  the  field,  after  having  been  in  it 
under  a  heavy  fire  of  grape  and  musketry  for  three 
hours. — I  have  been  required  by  my  surgeon  to  keep 
perfectly  still,  ever  since  the  battle. 

"I  was  in  the  act  of  leading  the  Ohio  regiment 
to  storm  two  of  the  most  formidable  batteries  in  the 
town,  flanked  by  a  stone  wall,  ten  feet  high,  with  a 
deep  ditch  in  front,  and  covered  by  a  strong  mus- 
ketry force  in  the  rear,  under  complete  shelter. 
There  were  two  other  batteries  of  grape-shot  dis- 
charged, thiat  swept  the  ground  continually. 

*'Colonel  Mitchell,  who  commanded  the  regiment 
of  Ohio  volunteers,  was  wounded  about  the  same 
time  that  I  was,  and  we  then  prudently  abandoned 
the  enterprise,  as  we  became  convinced  that  our  loss 
would  have  been  probably  at  least  one  hundred  more 
men,  had  we  persevered. 

"  I  hope  you  will  not  think  I  acted  rashly.  I 
know  that  I  am  often  rash  where  I  involve  myself 
alone;  not  so,  however,  v;hen  the  fates  of  others  are 
at  stake. 

"The  condition  in  which  we  were  placed  fully 
justified,  if  it  did  not  positively  require  us  to  make 
the  attempt.     The  peculiarity  of  our  situation    I 


MAJOR-GENERAL    BUTLER. 


193 


cannot  now  explain,  without  going  into  greater  de- 
tail than  I  am  able  to  do. 

"  The  battle  commenced  about  nine  o'clock,  A.  M., 
and  continued  without  intermission,  with  various 
degrees  of  intensity,  for  eight  hours. 

"  I  had  almost  one  thousand  men  in  the  battle, 
(the  Louisville  Legion  having  been  left  to  guard  our 
mortars),  and  of  that  number  we  lost  in  killed  and 
wounded  about  two  hundred  and  fifty.  * 

"  We  took  one  battery  and  a  house  fitted  up  as  a 
fortification,  and  assisted  the  regulars  in  taking  a 
second.  General  Worth,  with  great  gallantry  and 
equal  success,  and  with  far  less  loss,  carried  on  his 
operations  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  town. 

"  The  loss  of  the  regulars  who  acted  with  us,  was 
nearly  proportional  to  ours  as  I  learn,  though  I  have 
not  seen  the  official  returns. 

"  Under  all  the  circumstances,  the  terms  of  the 
capitulation  are  favourable  to  us.  There  are  still 
several  strong  forts  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy, 
which  we  would  have  been  compelled  to  take  by 
regular  approaches  or  with  ftavy  losses.  •  The  plaza 
is  of  itself  an  enormous  fortification  of  continuous 
houses,  with  thick  stone  walls,  and  all  the  streets 
leading  into  it  strongly  fortified  and  filled  with 
guns. 

"  They  admit  that  they  will  have  at  least  eight 
thousand  fighting  men,  whilst  on  our  part  we  cannot 
muster  five  thousand  for  duty,  and  have  only  a  few 
heavy  guns,  and  those  we  took  from  them. 

"  Never,  I  believe,  did  troops,  both  volunteers  and 
regulars,  behave  with  more  calmness  and  intrepidity, 
and  I  do  not  believe  that  for  downright,  straight- 
forward, hard  fighting,  the  battle  of  Monterey  has 
ever  been  surpassed." 

We  have  yet  another  tribute,  by  an  accomplished 

soldier,   the   present    Lieutenant-Colonel    Lorenzo 

Thomas,  of  the  regular  army,  to  show  the  estimate 

placed  on  Major-Gencral  Butler,  and  his  deeds  at 

17 


194 


LIFE     OF 


■jo- 


Monterey,  by  the  professional  soldiers  of  the  ser- 


vice 


*'  The  army  arrived  at  their  camp  in  the  vicinity 
of  Monterey,  about  noon,  September  19th.  That 
afternoon  the  general  endeavoured,  by  personal  ob- 
servation, to  get  information  of  the  enemy's  position. 
He,  like  General  Taylor,  saw  the  importance  of 
gaining  the  road  to  Saltillo,  and  fully  favored  the 
movement  of  General  Worth's  division  to  turn  their 
left,  &.C.  Worth  marched,  Sunday,  September  20th, 
for  this  purpose,  thus  leaving  Twiggs's  and  Butler's 
divisions  with  General  Taylor.  General  Butler  was 
also  in  favor  of  throwing  his  division  across  the  St. 
.John's  river,  and  approaching  the  town  from  the 
east,  which  was  at  first  determined  upon.  This  was 
changed,  as  it  would  leave  but  one,  and  perhaps  the 
smallest  division,  to  guard  the  camp  and  attack  in 
front.  The  20th,  the  general  also  reconnoitered  the 
enemy's  position.  Early  on  the  morning  of  the  21st, 
the  force  was  ordered  out,  to  create  a  diversion  in 
favor  of  Worth,  that  he  might  gain  his  position;  and 
before  our  division  caijp  within  long  range  of  the 
enemy's  principal  battery,  the  foot  of  Twiggs's  di- 
vision had  been  ordered  down  to  the  northeast  side 
of  the  town,  to  make  an  armed  reconnoissance  of  the 
advanced  battery,  and  to  take  it,  if  it  could  be  done 
without  great  loss.  The  volunteer  division  was 
scarcely  formed  in  rear  of  our  howitzer  and  mortar 
battery,  established  the  night  previous,  under  cover 
of  a  rise  of  ground,  before  the  infantry  sent  down  to 
the  northeast  side  of  the  town  became  closely  and 
hotly  engaged,  the  batteries  of  that  division  were 
sent  down,  and  we  were  then  ordered  to  support  the 
attack.  Leaving  the  Kentucky  regiment  to  support 
the  mortar  and  howitzer  battery,  the  general  rapid- 
ly put  in  march,  by  a  flank  movement,  the  other 
three  regiments,  moving  for  some  one  and  a  half  or 
two  miles  under  a  heavy  fire  of  round  shot.  As  fur- 
ther ordered,  the  Ohio  reoimcnt  was  detached  from 


v> 


MAJOU -GENERAL  DUTLER. 


.  195 


Quitman's  brigade,  and  led  by  the  general  (at  this 
lime  accompanied  by  General  Taylor)  into  t!ie 
town.  Quitman  carried  his  brigade  directly  on  the 
battery  first  attacked,  and  gallantly  carried  it.  Be* 
fore  this,  however,  as  we  entered  the  suburbs,  the 
chief  engineer  came  up  and  advised  us  to  withdraw, 
as  the  object  of  the  attack  had  failed,  and  if  \\c 
moved  on  we  must  meet  with  great  loss.  The  gen- 
eral was  loath  to  fall  back  without  consulting  with 
General  Taylor,  which  he  did  do — the  general  be- 
ing but  a  short  distance  off.  As  we  were  withdraw- 
ing, news  came  that  Quitman  had  carried  the  bat- 
tery, and  General  Butler  led  the  Ohio  regiment  back 
to  the  town  at  a  different  point.  In  the  street,  we 
became  exposed  to  a  line  of  batteries  on  the  oppo- 
site Side  of  a  small  stream,  and  also  from  ;i  tele  de 
parity  (bridge-head,)  which  enfiladed  us.  Our  men 
fell  rapidly  as  we  moved  up  the  street  to  get  a  posi- 
tion to  charge  the  battery  across  the  stream.  Com- 
ing to  a  cross  street,  the  general  reconno.j-ed  the 
position,  and  determining  to  cljarge  from  that  point, 
sent  me  back  a  short  distance  to  stop  the  firing,  and 
advance  the  regiment  with  the  bayonet.  I  had  just 
left  him,  when  he  was  struck  in  the  leg,  being  on 
foot,  and  was  obliged  to  leave  the  field. 

"  On  entering  the  town,  the  general  and  Iiis  troops 
became  at  once  hotly  engaged  at  short  musket  I'ange. 
He  had  to  make  his  reconnoissances  under  heavy  fire. 
This  he  did  unflinchingly,  and  by  exposing  his  per- 
son, on  one  occasion  passing  through  a  gate-way 
into  a  yard  which  was  entirely  open  to  the  enemy. 
When  wounded,  at  the  intersection  of  two  streets, 
he  was  exposed  to  a  cross-fire  from  musketry  and 
grape. 

"  In  battle,  the  general's  bearing  was  truly  that 
of  a  soldier,  arfd  those  under  him  felt  the  influence 
of  his  presence.     He  had  the  confidence  of  his  men.** 

After  referring  to  various  minor  points,  Major 
Thomas  thus  continues  his  account : 


^  _. 


196 


lilFB    OF 


"  When  General  Taylor  went  on  his  expedition  tc 
Victoria,  in  December,  lie  placed  General  Butler  in 
command  of  the  troops  on  the  Hio  Grande,  and  on 
tlie  stations  tlience  to  Saltillo,  Worth's  small  divi- 
sion of  regulars  being  at  the  latter  place.  General 
Wool's  column  had  by  this  time  reached  Parras,onc 
hundred  or  more  miles  west  of  Saltillo.  General 
Butler  had  so  far  recovered  from  his  wound  as  to 
walk  a  little,  and  ride,  though  with  pain  to  his  limb. 
One  night,  (about  December  10,)  an  express  came 
from  General  Worth,  at  Saltillo,  stating  that  the 
Mexican  forces  were  advancing  in  large  numbers, 
from  San  Luis  de  Potosi,  and  that  he  expected,  in 
two  days,  to  be  attacked.  His  division,  all  told, 
did  not  exceed  1500  men,  if  so  many,  and  he  asked 
for  reinforcements.  T!je  general  remained  up  dur- 
ing the  balance  of  ♦he  night,  and  sent  off  couriers  to 
the  rear  for  reinforcements,  and  had  the  llth  Ken- 
tucky and  1st  Ohio  foot,  then  encamped  three  miles 
from  the  town,  in  the  place  by  daylight:  and  these 
two  regiments,  and  Webster's  battery,  were  encamp- 
ed that  night  ten  miles  on  the  road  to  Saltillo.  This 
promptness  enabled  the  general  to  make  his  second 
day's  march  of  twenty-two  miles  in  good  season,  and 
to  hold  the  celebrated  pass  of  Los  Muertos,  and 
check  the  enemy  should  he  have  attacked  General 
Worth  on  that  day,  and  obliged  him  to  evacuate  the 
town.'  Whilst  on  the  next,  and  last  day's  march, 
the  general  received  notice  that  the  reported  ad- 
vance of  the  enemy  was  untrue.  Arriving  at  the 
camp-ground,  the  general  suffered  intense  pain  from 
his  wound,  and  slept  not  during  the  night.  This 
journey,  over  a  rugged,  mountainous  road,  and  the 
exercise  he  took  in  examining  the  country,  for  twen- 
ty miles  in  advance  of  Saltillo,  caused  the  great  in- 
crease of  pain  now  experienced." 

The  general  has  been  struck  on  the  side  of  the 
calf  of  his  leg,  by  a  grape-shot,  which  inflicted  a 
wound  at  the  time  not  supposed  to  be  severe.     It 


MAJOR-GENERAL     BUTLER. 


197 


(lid  not,  however,  heal,  and  occasioned  so  mucli  pain 
that  Genern!  Taylor,  on  his  return %to  Monterey, 
from  Victoria,  gave  him  leave  of  absence.  lie  im- 
mediately proceeded  to  the  United  Slates,  and  after 
a  brief  sojourn  at  his  residence,  was  sul)sequently 
ordered  to  the  army  of  General  Scott.  lie  succeeded 
the  latter  in  the  command  of  the  American  troops 
in  the  republic  of  Mexico^  whence  General  Taylor 
had  previously  gone.  While  being  cured  of  his 
wound,  the  battles  of  Vera  Cruz,  Cerro  Gordo,  and 
the  valley  of  Mexico,  had  been  fought,  and  subse- 
quent events  have  caused  it  to  be  much  regretted, 
that  he  was  thus  unable  to  participate  in  them.  His 
rank  and  character  would  possibly  have  enabled  liim 
to  prevent  many  exposures  on  the  part  ot  *nore  than 
one  of  his  junior  generals. 

Major-General  Butler  is  tall  and  athletic,  his 
whole  bearing  is  graceful  and  military,  and  his  ap- 
pearance prepossessing.  Strong  good  sense  is  mark- 
ed in  his  countenance,  and  his  career  in  the  service 
proves  this  to  be  his  distinguishing  trait.  Of  all  the 
generals  in  the  army,  regular, for  the  war,  or  of  volun- 
teers, who  have  been  under  fire  sitice  tlie  contest  be- 
gan, he  is  perhaps  the  only  one  of  whom  no  one  has 
complained,  whom  no  one  has  censured,  and  who 
has  contended  only  with  the  enemies  of  his  country. 
The  nomination  of  this  distinguished  soldier  will  aad 
new  strength  to  the  democratic  party  in  the  ensu- 
ing canvass,  and  has  wrung  eVen  from  his  opponents 
the  concession,  that  to  him  "there  is  no  objection," 
but  on  strictly  party  grounds.  This  objection  will 
doubly  endear  him  to  the  people  of  the  United 
States. 


of  the 
icted  a 
re.    It 


16* 


«  -r' 


i\' 


«■>»-•  r  -  ♦*  - 


APPENDIX. 


J  THE  WILMOT  PROVISO. 

The  immense  importance  of  the  consequences  of 
the  extension  of  our  constitution  and  laws  over  new 
territories  obtained  by  conquest  and  otherwise,  and 
the  unavoidable  conflict  of  the  interests  of  the  free 
and  slave  states,  render  this  question  most  interest- 
ing. Although  more  than  once  it  has  been  presumed 
in  the  foregoing  pages,  that  the  Wiimot  proviso  was 
understood,  it  may  not  be  improper  to  recapitulate 
briefly  its  character  and  nature.  Originating  with 
Mr.  Webster,  it  was  seized  upon  by  the  opposition, 
and  announced  to  the  world  through  the  instrumen- 
tality of  Mr.  David  Wiimot,  a  member  of  congress 
from  an  obscure  district  of  Pennsylvania,  with  the 
manifest  intention  of  alienating  the  southern  states 
from  the  support  of  the  war,  by  providing  that 
slavery  should  be  prohibited  in  any  new  territory 
acquired,  or  likely  to  be  acquired,  during  the  exist- 
ing Mexican  war.  Introduced  as  an  additional 
clause  of  an  important  bill,  it  became  almost  the 
defining  line  of  the  two  parties,  and  upon  it  much 
of  the  interest  of  the  approaching  congressional  con- 
test must  hinge.  In  the  resolutions  of  the  demo- 
cratic party,  previously  printed,  and  in  the  ensuing 
letter  will  be  found  the  embodiment  of  the  cardinal 
points  of  the  creed  of  the  great  democratic  party, 
and  the  honest  convictions  of  the  two  men,  Gene- 
rals Cass  and  Butler,  nominated  as  candidates  for 
the  suffrau;os  of  the  people. 

-     '        %: 


TUB    WILMOT    PROVISO. 


199 


Washington,  December  24,  1847. 

Dear  Sir  : — I  have  received  your  letter,  and  shall 
answer  it,  as  frankly  as  it  is  written. 

You  ask  me  whether  J  am  in  favour  of  the  acqui- 
sition of  Mexican  territory,  and  what  are  my  senti- 
ments with  regard  to  the  Wilmot  Proviso? 

I  have  so  often  and  so  explicitly  stated  my  views 
of  the  first  question,  in  the  Senate,  that  it  seeiq^J- 
most  unnecessary  to  repeat  them  here.  As  you 
request  it,  however,  I  shall  briefly  give  them. 

I  think,  then,  that  no  peace  should  be  granted  to 
Mexico,  till  a  reasonable  indemnity  is  obtained  for 
the  injuries  which  she  has  done  us.  The  territorial 
extent  of  this  indemnity  is,  in  the  first  instance,  a 
subject  of  Executive  consideration.  There  the  Con- 
stitution has  placed  it,  and  there  1  am  willing  to 
leave  it;  not  only  because  I  have  full  confidence  in 
its  judicious  exercise,  but  because,  in  the  ever-vary- 
ing circumstances  of  a  war,  it  would  be  indiscreet, 
by  a  public  declaration,  to  commit  the  country  to 
any  line  of  indemnity,  which  might  otherwise  be 
enlarged,  as  the  obstinate  injustice  of  the  enemy 
prolongs  the  contest,  with  its  loss  of  blood  and 
treasure. 

It  appears  to  me  that  the  kind  of  metaphysical 
magnanimity,  which  would  reject  all  indemnity  at 
the  close  of  a  bloody  ancf  expensive  war,  brought  on 
by  a  direct  attack  upon  our  troops  by  the  enemy, 
and  preceded  by  a  succession  of  unjust  acts  for  a 
series  of  years,  is  as  unworthy  of  the  age  in  which 
we  live,  as  it  is  revolting  to  the  common  sense  and 
practice  of  mankind.  It  would  conduce  but  little 
to  our  future  security,  or  indeed,  to  our  present  re- 
putation, to  declare  that  we  repudiate  all  expecta- 
tion of  rompensation  from  the  Mexican  government, 
and  are  fighting,  not  for  any  practical  result,  but  for 
some  vague,  perhaps  philanthropic  object,  which  es- 
capes my  penetration,  and  must  be  defined  by  those 


200 


THE    WILMOT    PROVISO. 


w^ho  assume  this  new  principle  of  national  intercom- 
munication.  All  wars  are  to  be  deprecated,  as  well 
by  the  statesman,  as  by  the  philanthropist.  They 
are  great  evils;  but  there  are  greater  evils  than 
these,  and  submission  to  injustice  is  among  them. 
The  nation  which  should  refuse  to  defend  its  rights 
and  its  honour,  when  assailed,  would  soon  have  nei- 
them^to  defend ;  and  when  driven  to  war,  it  is  not 
by professions  of  disinterestedness  and  declarations 
of  magnanimity,  that  its  rational  objects  car)  be  best 
obtained,  or  other  nations  taught  a  lesson  of  for- 
bearance—  the  strongest  security  for  permanent 
peace.  We  are  at  war  with  Mexico,  and  its  vigor- 
ous prosecution  is  the  surest  means  of  its  speedy 
termination,  and  ample  indemnity  the  surest  guar- 
antee against  the  recurrence  of  such  injustice  as  pro- 
voked it. 

The  Wilmot  Proviso  has  been  before  the  country 
some  time.  It  has  been  repeatedly  discussed  in 
Congress,  and  by  the  public  press.  I  am  strongly 
impressed  with  the  opinion,  that  a  great  change  has 
been  going  on  in  the  public  mind  upon  this  subject 
— in  my  own  as  well  as  others;  and  that  doubts  are 
resolving  themselves  into  convictions,  that  the  prin- 
ciple it  involves  should  be  kept  out  of  the  National 
Legislature,  and  left  to  the  people  of  the  Confede- 
racy in  their  respective  local  governments.  • 

The  whole  subject  is  a  comprehensive  one,  and 
fruitful  of  important  consequences.  It  would  be  ill- 
timed  to  discuss  it  here.  I  shall  not  assume  that 
responsible  task,  but  shall  confine  myself  to  such 
general  views,  as  are  necessary  to  the  fair  exhibi- 
tion of  my  opinions. 

We  may  well  regret  the  existence  of  slavery  in 
the  southern  states,  and  wish  they  had  been  saved 
from  its  introduction.  But  there  it  is,  and  not  by 
the  act  of  the  present  generation  ;  and  we  must  deal 
with  it  as  a  great  practical  question,  involving  the 
most  momentous  consequences.    We  have  neither 


9 
THE 


VVILMOT    PROVISO. 


201 


and 
De  ill- 
ihat 
such 
hibi- 


jither 


the  right  nor  the  power  to  touch  it  where  it  exists; 
and  if  we  had  both,  their  exercise,  by  any  means 
heretofore  suggested,  might  lead  to  results  which 
no  wise  man  would  willingly  encounter,  and  which 
no  good  man  could  contemplate  without  anxiety. 

The  theory  of  our  government  presupposes  that 
its  various  members  have  reserved  to  themselves  the 
regulation  of  all  subjects  relating  to  what  may  be 
termed  their  internal  police.  They  are  sovereign 
within  their  boundaries,  except  in  those  cases  where 
they  have  surrendered  to  the  general  government  a 
portion  of  their  rights,  in  order  to  give  effect  to  the 
objects  of  the  Union,  whether  these  concern  fqreign 
nations  or  the  several  states  themselves.  Lopal  in- 
stitutions, if  I  may  so  speak,  whether  they  have  re- 
ference to  slavery,  or  to  any  other  relations,  domes- 
tic or  public,  are  left  to  local  authority,  either  ori- 
ginal or  derivative.  Congress  has  no  right  to  say, 
that  there  shall  be  slavery  in  New  York,  or  that 
there  shall  be  no  slavery  in  Georgia ;  nor  is  there 
any  other  human  power,  but  the  people  of  those 
states,  respectively,  which  can  change  the  relations 
existing  therein ;  and  they  can  say,  if  they  will,  we 
will  have  slavery  in  the  former,  and  we  will  abolish 
it  in  the  latter. 

.  In  various  respects  the  territories  differ  from  the 
states.  Some  of  their  rights  are  inchoate,  and  they 
do  not  possess  the  peculiar  attributes  of  sovereignty. 
Their  relation  to  the  general  government  is  very 
imperfectly  defined  by  the  Constitution;  and  it  will 
be  found,  upon  examination,  that  in  that  instrument 
the  onl/  grant  of  power  concerning  them  is  convey- 
ed in  the  phrase,  "  Congress  shall  have  the  power 
to  dispose  of  and  make  all  needful  rules  and  regula- 
tions, respecting  the  territory  and  other  property 
belonging  to  the  United  States."  Certainly  this 
phraseology  is  very  loose,  if  it  were  designed  to  in- 
clude in  the  grant  the  whole  power  of  legislation 
over  persons  as  well  as  things.    The  expression,  the 


202 


THE    WILMOT     PROVISO, 


*  territory  and  other  property,"  fairly  construed, 
relates  to  the  public  lands  as  such,  to  arsenals,  dock 
yards,  forts,  ships,  and  all  the  various  kinds  of  pro- 
perty, which  the  United  States  may  and  must  pos- 
sess. 

But  surely  the  simple  authority  to  dispose  of  and 
regulate  these,  does  not  extend  to  the  unlimited 
power  of  legislation ;  to  the  passage  of  all  lawsy  in 
the  most  general  acceptation  of  the  word ;  which, 
by  the  by,  is  carefully  excluded  from  the  sentence. 
And,  indeed,  if  this  were  so,  it  would  render  unne- 
cessary another  provision  of  the  Constitution,  which 
grant^  to  Congress  the  power  to  legislate,  with  the 
consent  of  the  states,  respectively,  over  all  places 
purchased  for  the  **  erection  of  forts,  magazines,  ar- 
senals, dock-yards,"  «fec.  These  being  the  *^ pro- 
perty" of  the  United  States,  if  the  power  to  make 
"  needful  rules  and  rejjulations  concerninfj"  them 
includes  the  general  power  of  legislation,  then  the 
grant  of  authority  to  regulate  **  the  territory  and ' 
other  property  of  the  United  States"  is  unlimited, 
wherever  subjects  are  found  for  its  operation,  and 
its  exercise  needed  no  auxiliary  provision.  If,  on 
the  other  hand,  it  does  not  include  such  power. of 
.legislation  over  the  "other  property"  of  the  United 
States,  then  it  does  not' include  it  over  their  "terri- 
tory;^' for  the  same  terms  which  grant  the  one,  grant 
the  other.  "  Territory"  is  here  biassed  with  pro- 
perty, and  treated  as  such ;  and  the  object  was  evi- 
dently to  enable  the  general  government,  as  a  pro-  ' 
perty-holder — which,  from  necessity,  it  must  be — 
to  manage,  preserve,  and  *' dispose  of"  such  pro- 
perty as  it  might  possess,  and  which  authority  is 
essential  almost  to  its  being.  But  the  lives  and 
persons  of  our  citizens,  with  the  vast  variety  of  ob- 
jects connected  with  them,  cannot  be  controlled  by 
an  authority,  which  is  merely  called  into  existence 
for  the  purpose  of  making  rules  and  regulations  for 
the  disposition  and  management  of  property. 


THE     WILMOT     PROVISO. 


203 


Such,  it  appears  to  me,  vyould  be  the  construction 
put  upon  this  provision  of  the  Constitution,  wore 
this  question  now  first  presented  for  consideration, 
and  not  controlled'  by  imperious  circumstances. 
The  original  ordinance  of  the  Congress  of  the  Con- 
federation, passed  in  1787,  and  which  was  the  only 
act  upon  this  subject  in  force  at  the  adoption  of  the 
Constitution,  provided  a  complete  frame  of  govern- 
ment for  the  country  north  of  the  Ohio,  while  in  a 
territorial  cc^ndition,  and  for  its  eventual  admission 
in  separate  states  into  the  Union.  And  the  persua- 
sion, that  this  ordinance  contained  within  itself  all 
the  necessary  means  of  execution,  probably  pre- 
vented any  direct  reference  to  the  subject  in  the 
Constitution,  further  than  vesting  in  Congress  the 
right  to  admit  the  states  formed  under  it  into  the 
Union.  However,  circumstances  arose,  which  re- 
quired legislation,  as  well  over  the  territory  north 
of  the  Ohio,  as  over  other  territory,  both  within  and 
without  the  original  Union,  ceded  to  the  general 
government ;  and,  at  various  times,  a  more  enlarged 
power  has  been  exercised  over  the  territories — 
meaning  thereby  the  different  Territorial  Govern- 
ments— than  is  conveyed  by  the  limited  grant  re- 
ferred to.  How  far  an  existing  necessity  may  have 
operated  in  producing  this  legislation,  and  thus  ex- 
tending, by  rather  a  violent  implication,  powers  not 
directly  given,  I  know  not.  But  certain  it  is,  that 
the  principle  of  interference  should  not  be  carried 
beyond  the  necessary  implication,  which  produces 
it.  It  should  be  limited  to  the  creation  of  proper 
governments  for  new  countries,  acquired  or  settled, 
and  to  the  necessary  provision  for  their  eventual 
admission  into  the  Union ;  leaving,  in  the  meantime, 
to  the  people  inliabiting  them,  to  regulate  their  in- 
ternal concerns  in  their  own  way.  They  are  just 
as  capable  of  doing  so,  as  the  people  of  the  states ; 
and  they  can  do  so,  at  any  rate,  as  soon  as  their 
political  independence  is  recognized  by  admission 


204 


THE    WILMOT    PROVISO. 


into  the  Union.  During  this  temporary  condition, 
It  is  hardly  expedient  to  call  into  exercise  a  doubt- 
fu?  and  invidious  authority,  which  questions  the  in- 
telligence of  a  respectable  portion  of  our  citizens, 
and  whose  limitation,  whatever  it  may  be,  will  be 
rapidly  approaching  its  termination — on  authority 
which  would  give  to  Congress  despotic  power,  un- 
controlled by  the  Constitution,  over  most  important 
sections  of  our  common  country.  For,  if  the  rela- 
tion of  master  and  servant  may  be  regulated  or  an- 
nihilated by  its  legislation,  so  may  the  relation  of 
husband  and  wife,  of  parent  and  child,  and  of  any 
other  condition  which  our  institutions  and  the  ha- 
bits of  our  society  recognize.  What  would  be 
thought  if  Congress  should  undertake  to  prescribe 
the  terms  of  marriage  in  New  York,  or  to  regulate 
the  authority  of  parents  over  their  children  in  Penn- 
sylvania !  And  yet  it  would  be  as  vain  to  seek  one 
justifying  the  interference  of  the  National  Legisla- 
ture in  the  cases  referred  to  in  the  original  states 
of  the  Union.  I  speak  here  of  the  inherent  power 
of  Congress,  and  do  not  touch  the  question  of  such 
contracts  as  may  be  formed  with  new  states  when 
admitted  into  the  Confederacy. 

Of  all  the  questions  that  can  agitate  us,  those 
which  are  merely  sectional  in  their  character  are 
the  most  dangerous,  and  the  most  to  be  deprecated. 
The  warning  voice  of  him  who,  from  his  character, 
and  services,  and  virtue,  had  the  best  right  to  warn 
us,  proclaimed  to  his  countrymen,  in  his  farewell 
address — that  monument  of  wisdom  for  him,  as  I 
hope  it  will  be  of  safety  for  them — how  much  we 
had  to  apprehend  from  measures  peculiarly  affect- 
ing geographical  portions  of  our  country.  The 
grave  circumstances  in  which  we  are  now  placed 
make  these  words,  words  of  safety;  for  I  am  satis- 
fied, from  all  I  have  seen  and  heard  here,  that  a  suc- 
cessful attempt  to  ingraft  the  principles  of  the  Wil- 
rnot  Proviso  upon  the  legislation  of  this  government, 


tan 
thii 
sue 


THE    WILMOT     PROVISO. 


205 


A 


and  to  apply  theni  to  new  territory,  should  new  ter- 
ritory be  acquired,  would  seriously  affect  our  tran- 
quillity. I  do  not  suflfer  myself  to  foresee  or  to  fore- 
tell the  consequences  that  would  ensue ;  for  I  trust 
and  believe  there  is  good  sense  and  good  feeling 
enough  in  the  country  to  avoid  them,  oy  avoiding 
all  occasions  which  might  lead  to  them. 

Briefly,  then,  I  am  opposed  to  the  exercise  of  any 
jurisdiction  by  Congress  over  this  matter;  and  I  am 
m  favour  of  leaving  to  the  people  of  any  territory, 
which  may  be  hereafter  acquired,  the  right  to  regu- 
late it  for  themselves,  under  the  general  principles 
of  the  Constitution.     Because — 

1.  I  do  not  see  in  the  Constitution  any  grant  of 
the  requisite  power  to  Congress ;  and  I  am  not  dispos- 
ed to  extend  a  doubtful  precedent  beyond  its  neces- 
sity— the  establishment  of  Territorial  Governments 
when  needed  —  leaving  to  the  inhabitants  all  the 
rights  compatible  with  the  relations  they  bear  to  the 
Confederation. 

2.  Because  I  believe  this  measure,  if  adopted, 
would  weaken,  if  not  impair,  the  union  of  the 
states;  and  would  sow  the  seeds  of  future  discord, 
which  would  grow  up  and  ripen  into  an  abundant 
harvest  of  calamity. 

3.  Because  I  believe  a  general  conviction,  that 
such  a  proposition  would  succeed,  would  lead  to  an 
immediate  withholding  of  the  supplies,  and  thus  to 
a  dishonourable  termination  of  the  war.  I  think  no 
dispassionate  observer  at  the  seat  of  government  can 
doubt  this  result. 

4.  If,  however,  in  this  I  am  under  a  misapprehen- 
sion, I  am  under  none  in  the  practical^  operation  of 
this  restriction,  if  adopted  by  Congress,  upon  a  treaty 
of  peace  making  any  acquisition  of  Mexican  terri- 
tory. Such  a  treaty  would  be  rejected  just  as  cer- 
tainly as  presented  to  the  Senate.  More  than  one- 
third  of  that  body  would  vote  against  it,  viewing 
such  a  principlo  as  an  exclusion  of  the  citizens  of 

18 


206 


THE    WILMOT    PROVISO. 


the  slaveholding  states  from  a  participation  in  the 
benefits  acquired  by  the  treasure  and  exertions  of 
nil,  and  which  should  be  common  to  all.  I  am  re- 
peating —  neither  advancing  nor  defending  ♦hese 
views.  That  branch  of  the  subject  does  not  lie  in 
my  way,  and  I  shall  not  turn  aside  to  seek  it. 

In  this  aspect  of  the  matter,  the  people  of  the 
United  States  must  choose  between  this  restriction 
and  the  extension  of  their  territorial  limits.  They 
cannot  have  both;  and  which  they  will  surrender 
must  depend  upon  their  representatives  first,  and 
then,  if  these  fail  them,  upon  themselves. 

5.  But,  after  all,  it  seems  to  be  generally  conced- 
ed, that  this  restriction,  if  carried  into  effect,  could 
not  operate  upon  any  state  to  be  formed  from  newly 
acquired  territory.  The  well-known  attributes  of 
sovereignty,  recognized  by  us  as  belonging  to  the 
state  governments,  would  sweep  before  them  any 
such  barrier,  and  would  leave  the  people  to  express 
and  exert  their  will  at  pleasure.  Is  the  object,  then, 
of  temporary  exclusion  for  so  short  a  period  as  the 
duration  of  the  Territorial  Governments,  worth  the 
price  at  which  it  would  be  purchased? — worth  the 
discord  it  would  engender,  the  trial  to  which  it 
would  expose  our  Union,  and  the  evils  that  would 
be  the  certain  consequence,  let  that  trial  result  as  it 
might  ?  As  to  the  course,  which  has  been  intimated 
rather  than  proposed,  of  ingrafting  such  a  restriction 
upon  any  treaty  of  acquisition,  I  persuade  myself  it 
would  find  but  little  favour  in  any  portion  of  this 
country.  Such  an  arrangement  would  render  Mexi- 
co a  party,  having  a  right  to  interfere  in  our  inter- 
nal institutions,  in  questions  left  by  the  constitution 
to  the  state  governments,  and  would  inflict  a  serious 
blow  upon  our  fundamental  principles.  Few,  in- 
deed, I  trust,  there  are  among  us  who  would  thus 
grant  to  a  foreign  power  the  right  to  inquire  into 
the  constitution  and  conduct  of  the  sovereign  states 
of  this  Union ;  and  if  there  are  any»  I  am  not  among 


THE    WILMOT    PROVISO. 


207 


them,  and  never  shall  be.  To  the  people  of  this 
country,  under  God,  now  and  hereafter,  are  its  des- 
tinies committed;  and  we  want  no  foreign  power  to 
interrogate  us,  treaty  in  hand,  and  to  say,  Why  have 
you  done  this,  or  why  have  you  left  that  undone  f 
Our  own  dignity  and  the  principles  of  national  in 
dependence  unite  to  repel  such  a  proposition. 

But  there  is  another  important  consideration, 
which  ought  not  to  be  lost  sight  of  in  the  investiga- 
tion of  this  subject.  The  question  that  presents 
itself  is  not  a  question  of  the  increase,  but  of  the 
diffusion  of  slavery.  Whether  its  sphere  be  sta- 
tionary or  progressive,  its  amount  will  be  the  same. 
The  rejection  of  this  restriction  will  not  add  one  to 
the  class  of  servitude,  nor  will  its  adoption  give 
freedom  to  a  single  being  who  is  now  placed  therein. 
The  same  numbers  will  be  spread  over  greater  ter- 
ritory, and  so  far  as  compression,  with  less  abund- 
ance of  the  necessaries  of  life,  is  an  evil,  so  far  will 
that  evil  be  mitigated  by  transporting  slaves  to  a 
new  country,  and  giving  them  a  larger  space  to  oc- 
cupy. 

'  I  say  this  in  the  event  of  the  extension  of  slavery 
Over  any  new  acquisition.  But  can  it  go  there? 
This  may  well  be  doubted.  All  the  descriptions 
which  reach  lis  of  the  condition  of  the  Californias 
and  of  New  Mexico,  to  the  acquisition  of  \yhich  our 
efforts  seem  at  present  directed,' unite  in  represent- 
ing those  countries  as  agricultural  regions,  similar 
in  their  products  to  our  middle  states,  and  generally 
unfit  for  the  production  of  the  great  staples,  which 
can  alone  render  slave  labour  valuable.  If  we  are 
not  grossly  deceived — and  it  is  difficult  to  conceive 
how  we  can  be  —  thfe  inhabitants  of  those  regions, 
whether  they  depend  upon  their  ploughs  or  their 
herds,  cannot  be  slaveholders.  Involuntary  labour, 
requiring  the  investment  of  large  capital,  can  only 
be  profitable  when  employed  in  the  production  of  a 


208 


THB    WILMOT    PROVISO. 


few  favoured  articles  confined  by  nature  to  special 
districts,  and  paving  larger  returns  than  the  usual 
agricultural  prociucts  spread  over  more  considerable 
portions  of  the  earth. 

In  the  able  letter  of  Mr.  Buchanan  upon  this  sub- 
ject, not  long  since  given  to  the  public,  he  presents 
similar  considerations  with  great  force.  "  Neither," 
says  the  distinguished  writer, "  the  soil,  the  climate, 
nor  the  productions  of  California  south  of  36°  20f, 
nor  indeed  of  any  portion  of  it,  north  or  south,  is 
adapted  to  slave  labour ;  and  besides,  every  facility 
would  be  there  afforded  for  the  slave  to  escape  from 
his  master.  Such  property  would  be  entirely  inse- 
cure in  any  part  of  California.  It  is  morally  impos- 
sible, therefore,  that  a  majority  of  the  emigrants  to 
that  portion  of  the  territory  south  of  36°  30',  which 
will  be  chiefly  composed  of  our  citizens,  will  ever 
reestablish  slavery  within  its  limits. 

"In  regard  to  New  Mexico,  east  of  the  Rio 
Grande,  the  question  hais  already  been  settled  by  the 
admission  of  Texas  into  the  Union. 

"  Should  we  acquire  territory  beyond  the  Rio 
Grande  and  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  it  is  still 
more  impossible  that  a  majority  of  the  people  would 
consent  to  reestablish  slavery.  They  are  themserves 
a  coloured  population,  and  among  them  the  negro 
does  not  belong  socially  to  a  degraded  race." 

With  this  last  remark  Mr.  Walker  fully  coincides 
in  his  letter  written  in  1844,  upon  the  annexation 
of  Texas,  and  which  everywhere  produced  so  fa- 
vourable an  impression  upon  the  public  mind,  as 
to  have  conduced  very  materially  to  the  accomplish- 
ment of  that  great  measure.  "  Beyond  the  Del 
Norte,"  says  Mr.  Walker,  '*  slavery  will  not  pass ; 
not  only  because  it  is  forbidden  by  law,  but  because 
the  coloured  race  there  preponderates  in  the  ratio 
of  ten  to  one  over  the  whites ;  and  holding,  as  they 
doy  the  government  and  most  of  the  offices  in  their 


THE    WILMOT    PROVISO. 


201 


pass; 

cause 
ratio 
they 
their 


possession,  they  will  not  permit  the  enslavement  of 
any  portion  of  the  coloared  race,  which  makes  and 
executes  the  laws  of  the  country." 

The  question,  it  will  be  therefore  seen  on  exami- 
nation, does  not  regard  the  exclusion  of  slavery  from 
a  region  where  it  now  exists,  but  a  prohibition 
against  its  introduction  where  it  does  not  exist,  and 
where,  from  the  feelings  of  the  inhabitants  and  the 
laws  of  nature,  "  it  is  morally  impossible,"  as  Mr. 
Buchanan  says,  that  it  can  ever  reestablish  itself. 

It  augurs  well  for  the  permanence  of  our  confede- 
ration, that  during  more  than  half  a  century,  which 
has  elapsed  since  the  establishment  of  this  govern- 
ment, many  serious  questions,  and  some  of  the  highest 
importance,  have  agitated  the  public  mind,  and  more 
than  once  threatened  the  gravest  consequences,  but 
that  they  have  all  in  succession  passed  away,  leav- 
ing our  institutions  unscathed,  and  our  country  ad- 
vhncing  in  numbers,  power,  and  wealth,  and  in  all 
the  other  elements  of  national  prosperity,  with  a 
rapidity  unknown  in  ancient  or  in  modern  days.  In 
times  of  political  excitement,  when  difficult  and 
delicate  questions  present  themselves  for  solution, 
there  is  one  ark  of  safely  for  us,  —  and  that  is,  an 
honest  appeal  to  the  fundamental  principles  of  our 
Union,  and  a  stern  determination  to  abide  their 
dictates.  This  course  of  prpceeding  has  carried  us 
in  safety  through  many  a  trouble,  and  I  trust  will 
carry  us  safely  through  many  more,  should  many 
more  be  destined  to  assail  us.  The  Wilmot  Proviso 
seek§  to  take  from  its  legitimate  tribunal  a  question 
of  domestic  policy,  having  no  relation  to  the  Union, 
as  such,  and  to  transfer  it  to  another,  created  by  the 
people  for  a  special  purpose,  and  foreign  to  the  sub- 
ject-matter involved  in  this  issue.  By  going  back 
lo  our  true  principles,  we  go  back  to  the  road  of 
^eace  and  safety.  Leave  to  the  people,  who  will  be 
Affected  by  this  question,  to  adjust  it  upon  their  owi 
18* 


210 


THB    WILMOT    PROVISO. 


responsibility,  and  in  their  own  manner,  and  we 
shull  render  another  tribute  to  the  original  princi- 
ples of  our  government,  and  furnish  another  guaran- 
tee for  its  permanence  and  prosperity. 
I  am,  dear  sir,  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

LEWIS  CASS. 
A.  O.  P.  Nicholson,  Esq.,  Nashville,  Tennessee, 


THE  END. 


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To  be  completed  in  seven  semi-monthly  numbers,  at  twenty- 
five  cents  each,  or  ^2  50  elegantly  bound. 

This  work  gives  a  complete  account  of  the  prpsent  Social  and  Political 
Condition  of  ?*exico ;  a  view  of  its  Ancieni  Civilization  ;  a  description  of 
Antiquities  in  the  Museum  of  Mexico,  and  of  the  Ancieni  Remains,  strewn 
froiti  Cal'fornia  to  Oajaca;  which  are  copiously  illustrated.  It  also  fur- 
nishes a  record  of  the  author's  journeys  to  Tezcoco,  and  through  the  tierre 
ealiente, — a  full  account  of  the  Agriculture,  Manufactures.  Commerce,  Re- 
sources, Mines,  Coinage,  and  Statistics  of  iVTexico;  and,  added  to  all  this,  is 
a  complete  view  of  the  past  and  present  history  of  the  country  :  being  more 
replete  with  all  interestmg  information  concerning  Mexico,  than  any  work 
which  has  appeared  since  the  days  df  Humboldt.  The  engravings  are  nu- 
merous, and  of  the  most  finished  character,  highly  illustrating  the  text,  and 
adding  greatly  to  the  value  of  the  work. 

The  author  is  a  close  observer  of  men  and  manners,  and  writes  with  ele- 
gance and  vivacity.  His  descriptions  of  natural  scenery,  cities,  ruins,  and 
other  works  of  nature  and  art,  are  graphic  and  truthful  in  the  highest  de- 
gree. Ilis  Sketch  of  the  History  of  Rlexico  is  also  a  very  useful  compen- 
dium for  those  who  cannot  command  larger  works  on  the  same  subject. 
The  book  is  handsomely  printed  on  fine  paper,  and  bound  in  good  style. 
Mr.  Mayer's  work  on  Mexico  will  be  read  with  avidity  by  those  who  have 
read  Mr.  Prescott's  '*  Conquest  of  Mexico,"  since  it  furnishes  one  of  the  best 
descriptions  extant  of  the  present  condition  of  that  country. 

Any  person  in  the  country  sending  us  Three  Dollars,  shall  receive,  by 
mail,  two  copies  of  the  above  work.  The  first  number  will  be  issued  on 
thels.of  May,  1S47. 

Address,  postage  paid, 

G.  B.  ZIEBER  &  CO.,  Publishers, 

Fhiladelphia,  Pa. 


